V^^\- ^/«^>^ \--2^^^^" ^^ 














• \.-^ 
/"-. 



0^ o « * " ♦ 

























^. .^*' y^^-- U > .>Va- "^<-„ C** .-IQIK'. -e. A* 










^0' 










^^'\ 











• •■>' »i> 



/♦!i:^'/v /..i^.>o .**\.i^%v . 



''oV' 






V*^V** %*^-'*/ V'^'\/ ^ 
^.•^»;:A .^*\'^:;^^\ c°^''j^'\ .^ 



HISTORY OF KENTUCKY 



BY 



ELIZABETH SHELBY KINKEAD 



>i*;c 



NEW YORK •:• CINCINNATI :• CHICAGO 

AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY 






Copyright, 1896, 1909, by 
AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY 



HISTORY OF KENTUCKY 



LIBRARY Of CONGRESS 
Two Conies Received 

APR 20 190s 

Cop>'iiKPii t(Uiy ^ 
; CLAlsi 0^ aXc, No, 
^ COPY fc3. 



TO THE MEMORY OF MY FATHER 

William 115ur^ i^infeeaD 

FROM WHOM WAS DERIVED 

WHATEVER TRUTHFUL UNDERSTANDING OF THE KENTUCKY PEOPLE 

THIS LITTLE BOOK CONTAINS 



PREFACE 



In the preparation of this book, an attempt has been 
made to relate the events of practical, everyday life, in 
such a manner as to make the study of the history of our 
State a pleasure to the pupil. While adhering to facts 
as closely as they could be ascertained, the aim has been 
that the whole shall entertain as a connected story. 
Special effort has been made to portray the spirit of the 
Kenluckians, in order that the student may understand 
and revere the people from whom he is sprung. To 
this end, more space has been given to their character- 
istics as indicated by tales of particular acts, than to the 
statistics of battles in which they have taken part. 

As this is a narration of the life of a State, and as the 
connection of one incident with another is of more im- 
portance in a work of this kind than the grouping of 
kindred topics, the chronological order of development 
has been followed. 

The subject naturally divides itself into five clearly 
marked periods. And these lend themselves readily 
to important subdivisions. That portion of the history 
which extends to the close of the War of 1812 belongs 
to the poetic stage in the State's life; and that which 
follows, to the prose stage. It has been necessary in 
developing the later prose periods to depart somewhat 

5 



5 PREFACE 

from the simple method followed when setting forth 
the early poetic periods. But this seems rather an ad- 
vantage; for if the interest of the pupil is awakened 
at the outset, he will be eager to follow the fortunes 
of his State to the end, and will, it is hoped, patiently 
study the more prosaic episodes, in order to get a thor- 
ough grasp of the whole. 

It has been my earnest desire that the work should 
be historically sincere. The difficult aim has been con- 
stantly before my mind to make it impartial in all in- 
stances, and at the same time forceful and inspiriting. 
A Kentuckian, from my infancy I have been imbued 
with a knowledge and love of the State. And yet, 
having grown up in the New Kentucky, in her days 
of quietude, I have been enabled to approach the con- 
sideration of her significant periods with little individual 
prejudice. I have made a laborious and careful study 
of all available material, and I have tried to let the actions 
of the people, as they have been unfolded to me, speak 
for themselves, and reveal the Kentuckians. It is my 
hope that what I have written will find favor with my 
own people. ' E. S. K. 



CONTENTS 

\— PIONEER DAYS 
1 669- 1 782 

PAGE 

I. First White Men in Kentucky 9 

11. Early Settlements in Kentucky .... 19 

III. The County of Kentucky 29 

IV. Division of the County 40 

II — THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 

1782-1792 

V. The District of Kentucky ..... 50 

VI. Beginning of the Struggle 59 

VII. The Spanish Conspiracy 69 

VIII. The End of the Struggle 82 

\\\— FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 

I 792-1 850 

IX. Organization of the Government .... 93 
X. Political Situation in Kentucky . . . .105 

XI. The War of 1812 116 

XII. Local Affairs 127 

XIII. Civil Affairs and the Mexican War . . .141 

7 



8 



CONTENTS 



IV — THE CIVIL WAR 

1850-1865. 

XIV. The Situation in Kentucky 

XV. Kentucky's Position of Neutrality 

XVI. The Invasion of Kentucky 

XVII. The Second Invasion of Kentucky 

XVIII. Civil Conflicts 



PAGE 
161 

186 
196 



V— THE NEW KENTUCKY 

Since 1865 

XIX. The Restoration of Peace 
XX. The Era of Transition . 



205 
213 



Constitution of Kentucky 227 

Index 273 



I-#IONEER DAYS, 1669-1782 



CHAPTER I 

FIRST WHITE MEN IN KENTUCKY, 1 669-1 775 

The history of Kentucky is at once unique and attract- 
ive. It begins like a romance, thrilling in tales of heroic 
deeds and excitino: adventures. From the ^ ^ , , 

^ Kentucky's 

earliest settlement of the State, all through the honored 
crises in its own life and the life of the nation, 
Kentucky has held an honored position, and has produced 
men of great and noble character. None but the brave 
dared or desired to risk the perils of these untried forests ; 
therefore, Kentucky was founded by men of forceful 
qualities, remarkable as well for strength of mind as for 
endurance of body. The tide of immigration has passed, 
for the most part, to the north and to the south of Ken- 
tucky ; hence its present population consists almost exclu- 
sively of the descendants of the early settlers. The men 
who are prominent to-day are, in the main, sons of fathers 
whose fathers helped to establish the Commonwealth. 

Long ages before Kentucky was discovered, there dwelt 
in the land a race of beings called Mound Builders, on 
account of the mounds or monuments they The Mound 
erected. Many of these mounds have been ^u^^'iers 
opened, and have been found to contain bones of human 

9 



lO 



PIONEER DAYS 



beings and of the mastodon (a gigantic animal now extinct), 
as well as implements of stone, flint arrowheads, and pieces 
of pottery. Until recently, historians believed that these 




Relics from Mounds 



remains indicated a people different from, and more civil- 
ized than, the Indians ; but modern scientists have con- 
cluded that the Mound Builders were simply the ancestors 
of the present Indians. 

At the time when Kentucky was visited by the first 

pioneers, it was not the home of Indians, as were many of 

the other parts of America; but it was the 

Kentucky as ^ 

seen by hunting ground and battlefield of neighboring 

pioneers tribes from the north, the west, and the south. 

The beautiful and luxuriant for- 
ests were filled with elk and 




buffalo and varie- ^ 
ties of game that 
have long been extinct. 
Bears and wolves, pan- 
thers, tigers, and wild cats 
abounded in the dense undergrowth. 



Wild Animals of Kentucky 



FIRST WHITE MEN IN KENTUCKY 



II 



Indian valua 
tion of the 
land 



Seven rivers drain the land, -the Big Sandy, the Lick- 
ing the Kentucky, the Salt, the Green, the Cumberland, 
and the Tennessee. Following a northwestward course 
through the east, the middle, and the west of the State, 
these all flow into the Ohio, and thence into the waters 
of the mighty Mississippi. , . , f 

The Indians were by no means ignorant of the value ot 
this land. They were prepared to resist its permanent 
settlement 
to their ut- 
most ability, 
so that the pioneers, or 
first white men who 
came to Kentucky, had 
to contend not only 
with the wild beasts of 
the forest but with the 
equally savage Indian 
warriors. From the 
fierce encounter of 
Indians with Indians, 
and Indians with pio- 
neers, it came about that 
the State was called 
'' The Dark an*d Bloody 

That 'courage which was a necessity to our forefathers 
is still a marked characteristic of the sons of Kentucky. 
The pioneers were men sent forth by the wis- eo ,__^ 
dom of God to found a new Commonwealth. 
They went in peace, but with their rifles cocked to defend 
their lives from the Indians. 

In the early days of American discovery, some people 




12 



PIONEER DAYS 




La Salle 



believed that there was a great river in America leading 
across the continent to China. The distin- ^. ^ ^.^ 

First white 

guished Frenchman, La Salle, while in search meninKen- 
of this river, in the year 1669 or 1670, passed ^ ^ 

through a portion of Kentucky from 
the Big Sandy to the rapids of the 
Ohio. As early as 1750, Dr. 
Thomas Walker of Virginia led an 
exploring party into Kentucky by 
way of Powell's Valley, through the 
mountains in the eastern part of 
the State, and built a log cabin on 
the Cumberland River. But the land 
company he represented was not 
successful, and he returned home 
with little knowledge of the coun- 
try. One year later, Christopher Gist, an agent of the 
Ohio Land Company, beheld, stretching out before him, 
from some point on the Kentucky River, the impressive 
and beautiful land of Kentucky. There is also a tradition 
that, in the year 1754, a man by the name of McBride cut 
his initials on a tree at the mouth of the Kentucky River. 

Faint rumors now reached Virginia and North Carolina 
of the fertile land beyond the mountains, and, in the year 
Daniel Boone ^7^9* John Findley piloted Darnel Boone and 
in Kentucky £q^j. Q^^cr companions into the country which 
he had visited two years before. These courageous men 
were not driven by persecution, nor by the need to seek 
a livelihood for themselves and their families. Each one 
left behind him a *' peaceable habitation," as Boone called 
his quiet home on the Yadkin, in North Carolina, and 
started forth with a rifle in one hand and a hatchet in the 
other, in quest of adventure. 



FIRST WHITE MEN IN KENTUCKY 



13 



They pitched their tent on the banks of the Red River (a 
branch of the Kentucky), and remained peace- 

Boone and _ . . 

Stewart in the fully hunting until late in December. But one 
day Boone and John Stewart, when alone in 
the woods, were captured by Indians. After seven days 
they succeeded in 
making their es- 
cape, and returned 
to their camp, to 
find it deserted, no 
trace being left of 
their former com- 
panions. Boone and 
Stewart were soon 
joined by Squire 
Boone, a younger 
brother of Daniel's; 
but shortly after this, 
Stewart was killed 
by Indians. The 
two brothers, find- 
ing that they did 
not have enough 
ammunition, decided that the younger should go back to 
North Carolina to supply their need. Daniel was now 
left alone in the vast forests. 

In July, 1770, Squire Boone arrived with the ammuni- 
tion. The two brothers remained until March of the 
following year, and then returned to North ^jjg Long 
Carolina. Five other adventurers had joined Hunters 
them in their camp on the Red River. In the year 1769, 
a party of about forty men from Virginia and North Caro- 
lina went out on a hunting expedition. Nine of this 




Daniel Boone 



14 PIONEER DAYS 

company, led by Colonel James Knox, reached Kentucky 
the following year, and explored the country about the 
Cumberland and Green rivers. They did not come in 
contact with Boone's party. From the length of time all 
these adventurers were absent from home, they were 
called "The Long Hunters." 

Up to the year 1763, France had claimed the country 
on the east of the Mississippi which included Kentucky. 
Conflicting After the French and Indian War, Great 
claims Britain gained the right to this region. But 

because of prior possession, various tribes of Indians laid 
claim to the country. In the year 1768, the English gov- 
ernment purchased from the tribes of Indians called the 
Six Nations the title to all the lands lying between the 
Ohio and Tennessee rivers. This treaty was held at Fort 
Stanwix, now Rome, in New York. 

Bounty lands on the Ohio River were then granted to 
many of the officers and soldiers of the Virginia troops, 
Surveyors sent ^^^ Surveyors were sent to mark them out. 
to Kentucky Thus were brought to Kentucky many of the 
clever and gallant young men of Virginia whose names, 
or those of their descendants, afterwards became asso- 
ciated with the history of the State. 

Two interesting characters of this period were Han- 
cock Taylor and John Floyd. .They were deputies under 

, ^ Colonel William Preston, surveyor of Fin- 
Hancock Tay- _ ' ^ -^ 

lor and castle Countv, Virginia, of which Kentucky 

John Floyd . .-i ^ t-i ^ ^ j 

was a part until 1776. these men started 
forth in the high hopes of their young manhood, to survey 
the far-famed lands of Kentucky. Honor and wealth lay 
before them, and all the exciting pleasures of a perilous 
undertaking. The one was shot down by Indians a few 
months after his arrival ; the other lived nine years — 



FIRST WHITE MEN IN KENTUCKY 



15 



long enough to establish his family in Kentucky, and to 
aid in founding the new country — and then he fell a 
victim to the same death. 

There were other surveyors in the early days of Ken- 
tucky to whom a romantic interest attaches. Captain 
Thomas Bullitt, of Virginia, at the head of a 
party, in 1773, made surveys of land for Dr. 
John Connolly, at the falls of the Ohio, where the city of 
Louisville now stands. Close upon his explorations fol- 



Other surveyors 




Early Kentucky Settlers 



lowed those of James Douglas, who visited Big Bone Lick, 
where he found scattered on the ground the bones of the 
mastodon, whose huge ribs he used for his tent poles. The 
scholarly John Todd, later to be noticed, and his brother 
Levi, came to Kentucky in the same capacity, as did also 
two representatives of the Lee family of Virginia. 

The same year, there came into Kentucky a party of 
hunters and surveyors from Virginia, led by three brothers, 
James, George, and Robert McAfee, who later on became 



1 6 PIONEER DAYS 

prominent in the new country. This visit was for investiga- 
tion, and after selecting lands on the Salt River, in Mercer 
County, they made their way homeward, well- 

The McAfees j ^ J j ' 

Boone, and ' nigh exhausted by the trials of the journey. 
In Powell's Valley they met a large party 
which Daniel Boone was guiding into Kentucky. The life 
in the wilderness was so delightful to Boone that he deter- 
mined to make his home there. On the 25th of Septem- 
ber, 1773, he set out with his wife and children, and was 
joined by five other families and forty men besides. Their 
progress was interrupted, however, on the very thresh- 
old of Kentucky soil by an Indian attack, and six of the 
company were killed, Boone's son being one of the num- 
ber. This so disheartened the pioneers that they turned 
back toward their old homes. 

The same year, Simon Kenton roamed through Ken- 
tucky. The following year, James Harrod and forty men 
Indian hostiii- built themsclvcs cabins and laid off the town 
^^^^ of Harrodsburg, which, however, they were 

soon obliged to abandon. Shortly afterward. Governor 
Dunmore of Virginia sent Daniel Boone and Michael 
Stoner to guide out of the wilderness the surveyors who 
were in Kentucky. The Shawnee Indians had become so' 
hostile to the settlement of Kentucky that it was danger- 
ous for any white man to remain there. They were now 
gathering under their great chief. Cornstalk, for the blood- 
iest conflict that ever occurred between the whites and 
the Indians. 

The battle of Point Pleasant took place the lOth of 
Battle of Point October, 1774, near the mouth of the Kanawha 
Pleasant River. The white forces were collected 

by General Andrew Lewis, but the latter took no per- 
sonal part in the fight, being occupied with superintending 



FIRST WHITE MEN IN KEN lUCKY 1 7 

the erection of certain breastworks, necessary for the en- 
counter. The forces consisted mainly of sturdy Scotch- 
Irish from Virginia, under the command of Colonels 
Charles Lewis, William Fleming, and John Field. They 
were joined by two companies of brave men from beyond 
the Cumberland Mountains, who were eager to avenge the 
injuries they had suffered from the Indians ; one of these 
companies was under the command of Captain Russell, 
and the other under Captain Evan Shelby, who, with his 
fifty volunteers from the Watauga settlement, in North 
Carolina, hurried forward to the encounter. The attack was 
opened upon the division of Colonel Charles Lewis, but 
he was soon mortally wounded. In quick succession, the 
two remaining colonels, William Fleming and John Field, 
were cut down, the one being wounded, the other slain. 
The command then fell to Captain Shelby. 

From sunrise the battle raged fiercely. Victory wavered 
between the two sides. Many had already fallen, when, - 
toward noon. Cornstalk determined to outflank Result of the 
the whites and, by a bold movement, to end 
the conflict. But just at this time, Isaac Shelby, then a 
young lieutenant left in charge of his father's company, 
determined also to make a flank movement against the 
Indians. He took with him two other companies, com- 
manded by James Stewart and George Matthews. They 
crept through the underbrush, along the banks of the 
Kanawha, and surprised the enemy in the rear. The 
Indians became alarmed and began to retreat. The fight- 
ing, however, did not cease until near sunset. The victory 
thus gained by the whites was of the utmost importance 
in the settlement of Kentucky. Shortly afterward, the 
Shawnees entered into a treaty with Governor Dunmore, 
of Virginia. They gave up all their title to the lands 

KENT. HIST. — 2. 



PIONEER DAYS 



south of the Ohio River, and promised not to molest the 
white men further. Peace now reigned for a time, and 
the pioneers were enabled to make their homes in Ken- 
tucky. 

RECAPITULATION 



Kentucky's romantic history. 

Interesting relics found in ancient 
mounds. 

Mound Builders the ancestors of 
Indians. 

No Indian homes found in the region. 

The region the Indian hunting 
ground. 

A valuable region. 

Indians determined to resist its set- 
tlement. 

The courage of the pioneers. 

La Salle in Kentucky in 1669 or '70. 

Walker, Gist, and McBride come be- 
fore 1754. 

Findley guides a party in 1769. 

Boone and Stewart captured. 

They escape, to find their camp de- 
serted. 

They are joined by Squire Boone. 

Stewart is killed by Indians. 

Squire Boone goes home and returns. 



The brothers leave in 1 771. 

The Long Hunters. 

Great Britain gains the region in 1763. 

Also, she buys it from the Six Nations. 

Floyd, Taylor, and other surveyors 

sent to Kentucky. 
The McAfee brothers. 
Boone's party attacked by Indians. 
Simon Kenton visits Kentucky. 
James Harrod lays off Harrodsburg. 
Indian hostilities force the surveyors 

to leave. 
Indians gather under their great 

chief, Cornstalk. 
The battle of Point Pleasant. 
Colonels Lewis, Field, and Fleming 

killed or wounded. 
Captain Evan Shelby commands. 
Flank movement against the Indians. 
The whites gain a significant victory. 
Dunmore's treaty secures peace for a 

time. 



CHAPTER II 

EARLY SETTLEMENTS IN KENTUCKY, 177S-1776 

In the year 1775, permanent homes were made in Ken- 
tucky. James Harrod and his company 'came back to 
their cabins, which they had been forced to Permanent 
leave by Indian hostiUties, and the McAfees stations 
returned to their settlement on the Salt River. Not far 
from Harrodsburg, Benjamin Logan, with a few slaves, 
erected a station, to which he brought his family during 
the following year. A most important aid to the settle- 
ment of the country was the road Daniel Boone cut from 
Cumberland Gap to the fort m Madison County which 
bore his name. 

Far and wide was spread Boone's glowing account of 
the unknown region ; and though he did not succeed in 
firing very many with a desire to brave the 
perils of its untried forests, the news soon account of the 
reached some of the influential and wealthy 
men of North Carolina, who quickly foresaw the vast riches 
and power which might be theirs if they could gain pos- 
session of it. 

We have already seen that the Six Nations had sold 
to the English their title to that vast area of country 
which included the present State of Kentucky, saie of Indian 
and that after the battle of Point Pleasant, the ^'^^^^ 
Shawnee Indians, also, had renounced their right to the 
region. But such was the lawless and unstable condition 

19 



20 PIONEER DAYS 

of Indian possessions that the ownership seemed to rest 
with that nation which had gained the latest victory in 
the tribal wars. Thus the Cherokees, likewise, asserted 
a claim to the land. 

Captain Nathaniel Hart, of North Carolina, formed a 
company, known as Henderson and Company (consisting 
Henderson and of himself, his two brothers, and six others), to 
Company purchase this Cherokee title. They chose 

Colonel Richard Henderson as their legal head. Across 
the country, a distance of about three hundred miles, Hart 
and Henderson went to hold a conference with the Indians 
at their villages beyond the Alleghany Mountains. The 
Indians promised to consider the matter, and sent a com- 
mittee to examine the goods to be given in exchange for 
the land. These proved satisfactory, and a place of treaty 
was determined upon. On the 17th of March, 1775, 
twelve hundred savage warriors assembled at the Sycamore 
Shoals of the Watauga River. The nine members of the 
company were there, and all the men, women, and children 
of the settlement gathered to hear the decision of the 
council. When the Indian chiefs finally decided, after 
much speech-making on both sides, to sell to the whites 
their "hunting ground," — about seventeen million acres 
of land, — for the consideration of ten thousand pounds 
sterling, there was great rejoicing. 

The land bought by the company lay on the other side 
of the mountains; and though it was covered with wide- 
spreading forest trees, they gave it the pic- 
Transyivania turcsque and not inappropriate name of Tran- 

in America , . , 7,7 r <-r>i r 

sylvania, beyond the ivoods. 1 he purpose oi 
the company was to found a colony of which they should 
be the proprietors, and to sell lands to persons desiring to 
make their homes in the region. The scheme was brilliant 



EARLY SETI'LEMENTS IN KENTUCKY 21 

and gigantic ; and though it was soon abandoned, it had a 
most important inliuence on the future of the State. The 
proprietors were all educated men, who attracted to the 
country other men of ability. 

Daniel Boone was sent ahead to open a road for the 
proprietors. The trace then cut was later widened into 
the famous Wilderness Road,^ one of the two 

, . , r n 1 Boone's road 

ways (the other bemg by means of flatboats 
down the Ohio) by which there entered Kentucky the 
brave men and women who laid the foundations of the 
State. Colonel Boone's company consisted of about 
twenty-two men, and they were joined by a party of 
eight, under the leadership of Captain William Twetty. 
Their task was not so difficult as it was perilous, and just 
before it was completed their courage was put to the test. 
One morning, while they still lay asleep in camp, they 
were attacked by Indians. Two of their number were 
killed, and one was wounded so seriously that he could 
not be moved immediately. With that spirit of heroism 
inspired by the times, several of the men remained with 
their wounded comrade at the risk of their lives, while the 
others went on ahead about fifteen miles, to select a site 
upon which to erect a fort. 

When the proprietors arrived, they found three stations 
besides Boonesborough already settled in the country. 
They called for an election of delegates from ^^ ^ 

J _ *=* The Boones- 

these, in order that laws might be made for borough 
the government of the colony. Twelve dele- 
gates were duly elected and sent from Harrodsburg, Boil- 
ing Springs, and St. Asaph's or Logan's Station, and six 



1 The Wilderness Road. By Thomas Speed. Filson Club Publication 
No. 2. 



22 



PIONEER DAYS 



were elected for Boonesborough. This first legislative 
assembly held west of the Alleghanies met at Boones- 
borough, May 23, 1775, under the branches of a mighty 
elm which could comfortably shelter in its shadow one 
hundred people. The parliament passed nine laws to the 
satisfaction of all concerned, and adjourned to meet the 
following autumn ; but it never again assembled. 

The independent settlers in the country soon became 
dissatisfied, and asked Virginia to take them under her 
protection. Accordingly, in 1778, the legislature of that 
State annulled the purchase of the Transylvania propri- 
etors ; but in order to compensate them for their loss, she 
granted them 200,000 acres of land, and gave good titles 
to all those who had bought lands from the company. 

The structure Boone and his men erected at Boones- 
borough was the first rnilitary fortification on Kentucky 
TheBoones- soil, and it proved a very secure stronghold 
borough fort against the unskilled attacks of savages. It 
was laid out as a parallelogram, inclosed by posts sharp- 
ened at the end 
and driven firm- 
ly into the 
ground. At the 
four corners 
were built 
strong two-story 
log cabins with 
windows which looked out 
on the open space or court -'^ 3C^ 
of the inclosure. The sides 
which faced the forest had no 
windows, but only loopholes 
through which the pioneers could fire at their enemies. 




Fort at Boonesborough 



EARLY SETfLEMENTS IN KENTUCKY 



23 



The furnishings of the cabins were very rude, — a bed 
in one corner made of upright forks of trees, on which 
rested poles whose ends were thrust into holes 

^ The furnish- 

in the wall of the building, and on these poles ingsofthe 

were thrown for mattress and covering the 

skins of wild animals ; a rough-hewn dining table, and 

a few three-legged wooden stools. The windows were 

covered with paper saturated with bear's oil, through 

which the light penetrated, and an air of cheerfulness was 

gained by the huge fireplace which stretched nearly across 

one side of the room. 

Shortly after the fort was completed, in September, 

1 775, Daniel Boone brought his wife and daugh- 

Pioneer women ' ' -" » o 

ter to Kentucky. At Harrodsburg, also, Hugh 
McGary, Richard Ho- 



gan, and Thomas Den- 
ton settled with their 
families. In Novem- 
ber of this year, John 
McClellan brought his 
family into Kentucky, 
and, in company with 
Colonel Robert Patter- 
son, built a station which 
was named McClellan's. 
Here, fifteen years later, 
the town of Georgetown 
was incorporated. With 
the coming of the 
women, home life began 
in the wilderness, with 
all of its hardships, its 
perils, and its inspiriting 




A Backwoods Girl 



24 



PIONEER DAYS 



adventures. The women stood side by side with the men, 
and suffered and grew strong, labored and prospered, with 
them. To-day we look back to their lives of unselfish 
devotion, and are thrilled by admiration for their courage. 
There are no wild beasts for us to fight, no Indians, no 
dangers from hunger and cold. But if we would be 
true children of brave ancestors, there is a battle to enter 
far harder and more worthy of victory than any they were 
called upon to wage — a battle for the honor and purity 
of our own lives and of the State. 

Daniel Boone can in no way stand as a type of the early 
Kentuckians. They were far more remarkable and clever 
men. He did not feel himself inspired by character of 
any high motive, though he was always kind ^^"^^^i^oo^® 

and courageous. He 
sought the unpeopled 
lands of Kentucky 
because he loved the 
wild life of the woods. 
With the "coming of 
civilization, he de- 
parted. But he was 
an instrument in the 
hands of God to open 
the way for the foun- 
dation of a great State. 
By the side of Dan- 
iel Boone there towers 
another picturesque 
figure, Simon Kenton, 
famous 

Simon Kenton 

as an In- 
dian scout, and the hero of many startling adventures. 




Simon Kenton 



EARLY SETTLEMENTS IN KENTUCKY 



25 



His manhood began with a tragedy. He loved a girl who 
was won by his friend. He fought a duel with his rival, 
and, believing that he had killed him, fled from his old 
home in Virginia, and under another name tried to forget 
his deed in the wilderness of Kentucky. But he could 
not forget. The burden of that thought weighed heavily 




Running the Gauntlet 



upon his naturally kind and simple-hearted nature. Long 
years afterward, he ventured to return to Virginia to visit 
his family and to bring them to Kentucky. To his over- 
whelming joy, he found the man he supposed he had 
killed, alive and ready to be his friend. 

Once he was captured by Indians. Eight times he was 
made to run the gauntlet ; that is, to run down a long line 
of Indian men, women, and boys, each armed with a tom- 



26 PIONEER DAYS 

ahawk, club, or switch, with which the runner was struck. 
Three times he was tied to the stake to be burned aUve, 
and every time he was saved through some unexpected 
deUverance. . By his daring coolness, he filled even the 
Indians with terror, and thus he aided much in the settling 
of the new country. But he, too, like Boone, passed away 
before the advance of civilization in Kentucky. 

For the most part, the pioneers of Kentucky were from 

that unsurpassed race of people, the Scotch-Irish, who 

settled in the valley of Virginia, and then 

of the spread out into the neighboring States. Their 

Kentuckians . , „ ^ „ , 

ancestors had suffered religious persecutions 
in the Old World, and the pioneers brought into the rich, 
free land of Kentucky an intense love of God, of liberty, 
and of education, — three important factors in the great- 
ness of a nation as well as of an individual. Such men, 
seeking homes and prosperity for their children, were not 
to be daunted even by the fury of the savages. 

Occasionally, the faint-hearted would grow, weary of the 
hardships and dangers, and would depart ; but they left 
behind them the strong and brave who were worthy to be 
Healthful life the posscssors and founders of the beautiful 
of the pioneers ^^^^ country. The men could not safely plant 
the crops,' nor could the women milk the cows, except 
under the protection of armed guards who stood ready/ 
for the attacks of Indians ; yet none the less they perse- " 
vered in their determination to remain. An existence of 
healthful work with a steadfast purpose made them cheer- 
ful. The children played, and the young people laughed 
and were happy, although the only variety in their lives 
was the dread of a surprise or an occasional Indian raid. 

One day in the summer of 1776, Jemima Boone and 
the two daughters of Colonel Richard Callaway were out 



EARLY SETTLEMENTS IN KENTUCKY 



27 



on the Kentucky River, in a canoe, when they were cap- 
tured by five Indians. The girls tried to beat a romantic 
off the savages, while they screamed for help. ^p^^°*^® 
Being unsuccessful in their efforts, they dropped broken 
twigs or torn bits of their gowns to mark the way they 
were carried. Boone and Floyd, with a party of men 




Beating off the Savages 



from the fort, went in pursuit. They searched for two 
nights and days, but did not overtake the Indians until 
they had gone about forty miles from Boonesborough. 
There they found the girls, thoroughly frightened, but 
unharmed. It is entertaining to learn that three weeks 
later the first wedding upon Kentucky soil took place 
when Squire Boone united in marriage Betsy Callaway, 
the eldest of the girls, and young Samuel Henderson, one 
of the rescuing party. 



28 



PIONEER DAYS 



RECAPITULATION 



Permanent homes in Kentucky. 

Harrod and his company return. 

The McAfees again at their station. 

Boone's account impresses influential 
men of North CaroHna. 

Their desire to buy the region. 

The Cherokees' claim. 

Hart and Henderson form a com- 
pany. 

Colonel Henderson elected presi- 
dent. 

Conference with Indians at Wa- 
tauga. 

Indians sell their hunting ground. 

Colony of Transylvania in America. 

Boone cuts the Wilderness Road. 

His company attacked by Indians. 

Boonesborough fort erected. 

Arrival of the proprietors. , 

Other stations previously settled. 

Delegates appointed to frauie laws 
for the colony. 



Boonesborough parliament meets, 

May 23, 1775. 

The proprietors' purchase annulled. 

The compensation made by Virginia. 

The Boonesborough fort, a strong 
fortification against Indians. 

The rude furnishings of the cabins. 

Daniel Boone's family arrive. 

Other families come to Harrodsburg. 

McClellan's station built. 

Pioneer women. 

Character of Daniel Boone. 

Simon Kenton's adventures. 

The pioneers mostly Scotch-Irish. 

Character of the early Kentuckians. 

Healthful and happy life in the wil- 
derness. 

Indian raids the only variety. 

Capture of Jemima Boone and the 
Callaway girls. 

Their rescue by Boone and Floyd, 

First marriage on Kentucky soil. 



CHAPTER III 

THE COUNTY OF KENTUCKY, 1 776-1 780 

Although it was not until 1778 that the title of the 
Transylvania Company was legally annulled, it had long 
before ceased to be considered valid. On the Kentucky 
4th of July, 1776, the Continental Congress county 
adopted the Declaration of Independence, and 
in December of that year Kentucky ^ County was estab- 
lished by Virginia. Before this time, the region was 
a part of Fincastle County, Virginia, and so remote a part 
that the settlers had no voice in the government of the 
State. But now they were entitled to choose for them- 
selves two representatives to the Virginia legislature, 
and to have local courts of justice and military pro- 
tection. The change brought greater stability to the 
colony. Harrodsburg was selected as the county seat, 
and the first court was held there in September, 1777 
It was composed of the ablest men of the time. Among 
the number were John Floyd, John Todd, Benjamin Logan, 

1 After the Transylvania Colony was abolished, the name •' Kentucky " was 
adopted by the pioneers. "Kentucky is from the Iroquois word Kentake, 
meaning prairie or meadow land. The name probably originated in those 
treeless stretches of country between the Salt and Green rivers, which our 
ancestors called barrens. The Indians in early times burnt the trees off these 
lands and then designated them by Kentake, meaning the meadow or prairie 
lands."— Centenary of Kentucky^ by R. T. Durrett; Filson Club Publication 
No. 7. 



30 



PIONEER DAYS 



John Bowman, and Richard Callaway, all men of character, 
who became distinguished in the pioneer struggle for exist- 
ence. Levi Todd was appointed clerk, and John Bowman 
colonel of Kentucky County. 

For the next two years, the different stations were dis- 
Repeated turbed by frequent raids from Indians, which, 

Indian raids however, did not result in any serious" loss of 
life to the whites, but proved extremely distressing to the 




/ 













Fleeing from the Indians 



women and children and unfavorable to the growth of the 
country. Harrodsburg was first attacked, and then, in 
quick succession, Boonesborough and Logan's fort. An 
incident in connection with the latter siege is worthy of 
remembrance, as it illustrates the sagacious heroism of 
a man whose every act was honorable and courageous. 



THE COUNTY OF KENTUCKY 



31 



In the spring of 1777, some women were milking cows 
outside the fort, guarded by armed men, when they were 
fired upon by Indians. All fled toward the Logan's 
fort, but one man was killed, another slightly i^eroism 
wounded, and a third so severely injured that he was unable 
to escape. The Indians left him where he fell, while they 
lurked within gunshot. Secure of his scalp, they hoped 




Lc: 



mg his comrade 



to entrap others who might venture to his rescue. In- 
side the fort his wife and children wailed in apprehen- 
sion for his fate, and still none dared face the certain death 
of going to his assistance. When twilight came on, Logan 
tied over his body the loose feather bed his wife had 
brought from Virginia, and getting down on all fours he 
crept outside the fort, grunting like one of the hogs which 
roamed around the inclosure. Suddenly he seized the 
wounded man, and darted toward the fort, before the sur- 



32 PIONEER DAYS 

prised and puzzled Indians had time to recover sufficiently 
to take sure aim at him. Balls and arrows flew about him, 
but he and his companion reached the fort in safety. 

The Indians continued their resistance to the settle- 
ment of Kentucky, and yet the population slowly grew. 
Indian Boonesborough suffered a second attack, July, 

hostilities I'j'j'j. At this time there were only twenty- 

two fighting men to defend the fort; but toward the end 
of the year that station was increased by fifty men and 
their famihes, and Logan's fort had an addition of thirty- 
eight families. There were now between five hundred and 
six hundred people in Kentucky ; and only the stout- 
hearted came, for it was known that the Indians were 
powerfully aided by the English in their warfare upon the 
Kentuckians, and that it would probably be long continued. 

We have seen that the country west of the Alleghanies 
and east of the Mississippi had been in the possession of 
the French, who began to settle it as early, probably, as 
The British 1 688, after the celebrated La Salle (who made 
aid the Indians explorations there) had returned to his native 
land with accounts of the great river and the fertile 
country. Later on, a conflict arose between the French 
and English colonists in North America that developed 
into what is called the French and Indian War. After a 
long and fierce struggle, the French surrendered to the 
Enghsh in 1763. The old French villages, Kaskaskia, 
Cahokia, etc., in Illinois, and Vincennes, on the Wabash, 
were fortified by the conquerors, and, at the outbreak of 
the Revolution, these posts were the military strongholds 
of the Enghsh king. It was from them that the Indians, 
who had allied themselves with Great Britain against the 
Americans, received the supplies which enabled them to 
besiege the Kentuckians. 




George Rogers Clark 



THE COUNTY Ol- KENTUCKY 33 

George Rogers Clark had been contemplating an attack 
upon these British possessions that would subdue the 
power of the Indians, and open the 
west to the Americans. About this 
time he received an order from the 
Virginia legislature to lead his expe- 
dition into the Illinois coun- 

George 

Rogers Clark's try, as that region was then 
expedition ^^^^^^^^^1^ called. Clark 

had visited Kentucky in 1776, and had 
determined to throw in his fortunes 
with that colony. He was a young 
Virginian of striking bearing and bold, unwavering char- 
acter. He possessed precisely the order of talent fitted 
for the expedition to which he was called. His plan of 
conquering the Illinois country was adroit and vigorous. 
His victorious march froin Kaskaskia to Cahokia, and 
the final capture of Vincennes, February 25, 1779, distin- 
guished him as a man of high military genius. An account 
of these campaigns belongs properly to the history of the 
United States. Their result, however, was of inestimable 
benefit to the settlers in Kentucky and they rejoiced in 
the glory attending them; for most of the men who 
served with Clark either had lived in Kentucky or in- 
tended to make their homes there. John Todd, already a 
prominent Kentuckian, was made county lieutenant or 
governor of the Illinois country. 

When Clark and his troops came down the Ohio in flat- 
boats, on their way to the Illinois country, they brought 
with them about twenty families who intended ^larkthe 
to settle in Kentucky. They landed upon a ^^^^^I'^^l 
small island at the Falls of the Ohio, May 27, 
1778, and proceeded to erect a fort. Here they remained 

KENT. HIST. — 3 



34 



PIONEER DAYS 



until the following autumn, when they removed to the 
mainland and built a fort at the foot of the present Twelfth 
Street. In 1780, this settlement, which grew to be the 
largest city in the State, received the name of Louisville. 
On Christmas day a party was given in the old Twelfth 
Street fort. Everybody assisted. They called it a house- 




A Christmas 'Party 

warming, and they made merry together, dancing the 
Virginia reel to the music of an old negro fiddler. 

While Clark and his Kentucky captains were carrying 
on their conquests in the West, a very important event had 
taken place at home. In February, 1778, 
Boone and twenty-six men, who had gone to 
the Blue Licks to make salt for the different stations, were 



Boone's cap 
ture 



THE COUNTY OF KENTUCKY 



35 



captured by a party of Indians on their way to attack 
Boonesborough. The Indians were so elated with their 
prize that they abandoned the idea of going to Boones- 
borough, for the time, and returned in triumph with their 
prisoners, to their village, Chillicothe. There Boone re- 
mained until early in the following June, when the savages 
again assembled to carry out their delayed plan. Then he 




Eoone"s Escape 

determined to escape, and to warn his fort, whatever might 
be the danger to himself. He reached his friends, un- 
harmed, in four days, after a journey of i6o miles, during 
which he had but one meal. 

Boone's escape delayed, for several weeks, the plan of 
the Indians; but on the 8th of August, a formidable band 
of savages, painted and bedecked with all their giege of 
war equipments, and with French and British Boonesborough 
colors flying, surrounded the fort. They were commanded 



36 PIONEER DAYS 

by a French officer, Captain de Quindre, who demanded, 
in the name of his Britannic Majesty, the surrender of the 
garrison. Strange to relate, two days were granted for 
the consideration of this proposition, during which time 
all the horses and cattle were collected in the fort, and 
then Boone announced, with many jeers at the discom- 
fited captain, that they were ready to defend their fort 
while a man was living. 

De Quindre now determined to entrap Boone, if possible. 
He asked him, with eight other men, to come outside the 
De Quindre 's fort to treat with him, and this was agreed to. 
'■"^^ But before the conference was over, the cun- 

ning officer said that it was a custom, when concluding a 
treaty, for two of the Indians to shake the hands of each 
white man. Thereupon two powerful Indians seized 
Boone and his men with the intention of capturing them ; 
but the hardy Kentuckians wrung themselves free and 
fled into the fort. Soon the firing began. The Indians 
made an unsuccessful attempt to burn the fort, while 
de Quindre ordered a trench dug to undermine its walls ; 
but his purpose was discovered in time and frustrated. 

The siege lasted nine days. The stoutest hearts were 
tried, but no one thought of surrendering. On the 20th 
Result of the day of the month, the warriors took their de- 
^^^2^ parture. Only two men among the whites 

were killed and four were wounded. The Indians prob- 
ably suffered no greater loss ; but they were discouraged 
by the resistance of the garrison, and never again at- 
tempted an attack upon Boonesborough. Clark's victories 
in the West, coming about this time, weakened the power 
of the Indians and inspired confidence in the hearts of 
the Kentuckians. Immigrants streamed into the country, 
and new stations sprang up everywhere. 



THE COUNTY OF KENTUCKY 



37 



News traveled slowly into the wilderness in those days; 
but the spirit of the pioneers was in ardent sympathy with 
the great struggle for independence which was Founding of 
going on beyond their borders. In April, Lexington 
1779, Colonel Robert Patterson, in company with James 
Masterson, the McCon- 
nels, Lindseys, Morri- 
sons, and others, began 
a settlement in the most 
beautiful part of the 
Blue Grass Region, to 
which the name of Lex- 
ington was given, in 
honor of the first battle 
of the Revolution. 

The same year, in 
May, the land laws 
were passed by the legis- 
lature of Virginia, and 
commissioners were ap- 
pointed to consider all 
claims and settle all disputes on the subject. The court 
was opened at Logan's fort, October 13, 1779, with Wil- 
liam Fleming, Edmond Lyne, Tames Barbour, 

^ , . . Land laws 

and Stephen Trigg as commissioners, and John 
Williams as clerk. The bold hunter, whose greatest desire 
had been for romantic adventure, was now joined by the 
speculator, who sought fortune in the new country — 
Virginians, largely, in whom the love of land was bred as 
a passion. 

Altogether, the year 1779 was a notable one in the his- 
tory of Kentucky. But following close upon its growth 
and prosperity came what is known in the annals ol 




Robert Patterson 



38 



PIONEER DAYS 



the State as the "Hard Winter." Unmelting snows lay 
deep over the land. Horses and cattle perished, and 
The "Hard even the wild animals shrunk to the bones. 
Winter" Only the bears, living in the hollows of trees, 

withstood the severity of the cold. Life in the roughly 
built cabins of the pioneers was trying during the mildest 
of winters ; but it was torturing now. Because of the in- 
creased population, the supply of corn gave out. The 
only food was lean game, which was secured with the 
greatest difficulty. But the sufferings of the travelers 
who had been overtaken by the storms on their way to 
Kentucky were even greater. Crowded into the cabins, 
the settlers could manage to have some amusement for the 
time and could hope for the future. The women spun and 
wove, and the men made the utensils necessary for daily 
use. They turned their attention, also, to the education of 
their children. During this winter, a school was opened 
at Boonesborough by Joseph Doniphan. 

As early as 1776, Mrs. William Coomes taught a school 

in the fort at Harrods- 
burg. She had no text- 
books. Smooth boards 
of wood were used for 
paper, and the juice of 
oak balls for ink. The 
children learned to write 
and work ex- First schools in 

amples from Kentucky 

copies set them by the 

teacher. When they could 

read, they had Bibles 

Little private schools of this 

to read and write 




A Schoolhouse in the Backwoods 



and hymn books to study 

kind, where the pupils were taught 



THE COUNTY OF KENTUCKY 



39 



and calculate, were opened in the different stations. Per- 
haps the children studied as hard (being grateful for any 
opportunity to learn) as the boys and girls do to-day, who 
have cultured teachers and attractive text-books. 

The spring brought many men of talent and education 
to Kentucky ; it brought, also, continued warfare with the 
British and Indians. Captain Henry Bird, a capture of 
British officer, with six hundred Canadians Mart/n's^"^^ 
and Indians, invaded the settlements on the stations 
Licking River, June 22, 1780, and captured Ruddle's and 
Martin's stations. These garrisons offered no resistance 
to an army so formidable in numbers and supplied with 
artillery. Everything valuable that the forts contained 
was carried off by the savages. The inhabitants were 
captured and taken to the Northwest, where they were 
scattered among the Indians. Many of the women who 
could not travel fast enough were tomahawked. 



RECAPITULATION 



Kentucky County established. 
Harrodsburg the county seat. 
Men of ability compose the first court. 
Indians attack Harrodsburg, then 

Boonesborough. 
Logan's fort attacked. 
Second attack of Boonesborough. 
Population increases. 
The British aid the Indians. 
Clark's expedition. 
His military genius. 
He conquers the Illinois country. 
John Todd made governor of the 

Illinois country. 
Clark the founder of Louisville. 
Christmas party at Louisville. 
Boone and others captured at the 

Blue Licks. 



A third siege of Boonesborough 

planned by the Indians. 
Boone escapes to warn his fort. 
Boonesborough attacked. 
Indians commanded by Captain de 

Quindre. 
Boone declines to surrender. 
De.Quindre's tricks unsuccessful. 
The siege ended after nine days. 
The population increases. 
Lexington founded. 
Land commissioners appointed. 
Court opened at Logan's fort. 
Speculators come to Kentucky. 
The "Hard Winter." 
First schools in Kentucky. 
Capture of Ruddle's and Martin** 

stations. 



CHAPTER IV 

DIVISION OF THE COUNTY, 1 780-1 782 

The population steadily increased. In 1780, the legis- 
lature of Virginia thought it advisable to divide the County 
Division of of' Kentucky into three counties, — Jefferson, 
the county Fayette, and Lincoln. John Floyd, John Todd, 
and Benjamin Logan were appointed colonels of their 
respective counties, and William Pope, Daniel Boone, and 
Stephen Trigg, lieutenant colonels. Colonel Clark was 
raised to the rank of brigadier general. 

The most important consideration of the newly settled 
country was military protection from the Indians. The 
Eagerness next interest was the proper distribution of 

for land j^g lands. Each county had its special sur- 

veyor, — George May for Jefferson, Thomas Marshall for 
Fayette, and James Thompson for Lincoln. So great was 
the desire to gain property in this beautiful Kentucky 
country that on one occasion when General Clark had 
planned an attack upon certain Indian towns, he was 
obliged to order the surveyor's office to be closed, and to 
state that it would not be opened until after the expedition 
was over, before he could induce any one to listen to his 
call for volunteers. 

Raids were no less frequent during the year 1781, but 
they were less carefully planned than formerly. The 
Continued Indians were preparing for war on a larger 

warfare scalc, whlch they hoped would drive out the 

40 



DIVISION OP' THE COUNTY 



41 



intruders from their hunting ground. But through aH this 
tale of disheartening warfare runs the invigorating story 
of the valor of the Kentuckians, and pictures of noble 
magnanimity stand out to refresh us. 

John Floyd, the colonel commandant of Jefferson County, 




Wells assisting Floyd 



had gone with a number of men to the assistance of a 
neighboring settlement. He was wounded, lens's 
and was retreating on foot before the pursu- magnanimity 
ing Indians, when he was overtaken by Captain Samuel 
Wells, who w^as also fleeing for his life. Floyd and Wells 
had been enemies, but the past was forgotten. Instantly the 



42 PIONEER DAYS 

generous captain sprang from his horse, lifted Floyd into 
the saddle, and ran by his side to support him, thus risk- 
ing his life for his enemy. Both were saved and were 
friends ever afterward. 

The following spring opened with a fierce conflict which 

has always been known as Estill's defeat. A party 

of twenty-five Wyandots were seen passins: 

Estill's defeat i o 

Boonesborough. News of the fact was brought 
to Captain James Estill at his station on the south of the 
Kentucky River, near where Richmond now stands, and he 
started in pursuit of the Indians, with forty men. Shortly 
after his departure the savages came upon his unguarded 
fort, killed and scalped a young girl, and destroyed the 
cattle, before they departed. Two boys were sent as 
runners to bear the news of the tragedy to Estill. A 
party of the men returned to protect the women, while the 
rest, to the number of twenty-five, pushed on and overtook 
the Indians, not far from the present town of Mount Ster- 
hng. The fight which then occurred required hearts of 
unwavering courage. It was not a battle, but a combat of 
man with man. For nearly two hours the struggle lasted, 
each one of the company from behind a tree shooting 
toward the Indian he had selected. At last the whites 
were overcome. Nine were killed, including the brave 
Estill, and four were wounded. The latter, however, 
escaped with those who were uninjured. 

In the month of July, two British captains, McKee and 

Caldwell, with a company of rangers from the British posts 

at Detroit, o:athered together over one thou- 

McKee and ' ^ ^ 

Caldwell's sand Indians, — the largest body of troops up 
^™^ to that time collected west of the Alleghanies. 

It was their intention to attack Wheeling, but on their 
march thither, news reached them that General Clark was 



DIVISION OF THE COUNTY 43 

on his way to surprise the towns of the Shawnee Indians. 
They turned back to defend these towns, and, to their 
mortification, found that the report was false. This 
so discouraged the Indians that a large number of 
them deserted ; but the more resolute British officers were 
not to be thus deterred from their purpose to harass and 
fight the Americans. They succeeded in holding a com- 
pany of over three hundred Indians and rangers, with 
which they pushed on into Kentucky, to attack the weak 
stations in Fayette County. 

They reached Bryan's station on the morning of the 
1 6th of August, 1782. Halting in the neighborhood of 
the fort, they sent a few Indian spies ahead to Bryan's sta- 
draw out the whites, meaning then to rush upon ^^°^ attacked 
them with the whole body of their forces. Most fortunately, 
the majority of the men were inside the fort, making ready 
to go to the assistance of the stations on the south of the 
Kentucky River, whither the Wyandots had gone after 
Estill's defeat. The spies were discovered; and the 
oft-tried Kentuckians, wise in the tactics of Indian warfare, 
understood the meaning of their presence, and immediately 
began preparations for a siege. 

Now there was no spring inside the walls of the fort ; 
and water would be a necessity if the attack should continue 
long. The fetching of water was everywhere Heroism of the 
the work of women, a fact which the Indians women 
knew. If the men should go for it now, the spies would 
immediately suspect that they had been discovered. The 
attack might then begin at once, which would be fatal to 
the garrison. 

It was unlikely, however, that the women would be 
disturbed, and they were called together. The situation 
was explained to them. They were urged to go for the 



44 



PIONEER DAYS 



water and to act as though they did not know that a 
band of savages was within gunshot. 

There was a moment of intense excitement, of inde- 
cision and shrinking from the task; but the women in 
those stirring times of danger had acquired a warlike 
courage. Moreover, they had learned to forget them- 
selves, and to think only of the good of their family, 
their station, and their country. The bravest among the 




Marching to the Spring 

older women stepped forward and declared their readi- 
ness to go on the trying mission. One by one, the 
younger women and girls followed, emboldened by this 
resolute spirit, until the whole body of women marched 
to the spring with their buckets, laughing and talking 
unconcernedly together. On their return, however, their 
steps grew faster and faster, and they fairly rushed into 
the safety of the fort. 



DIVISION OF THE COUNTY 45 

Immediately afterward the attack began ; but the gar- 
rison was now ready for it. Swift-footed runners were 
sent to summon assistance from the neighbor- 
ing stations. Five miles away, at Lexington, ®^^^se 
Major Levi Todd, with forty men, had just started for the 
southern border of the country. A messenger overtook 
him, and in a short time he reached Bryan's Station. The 
British officers now saw that all hope of taking the fort by 
surprise was vain. At night the Indians attempted to set 
fire to it ; but, being unsuccessful, they were quite ready 
to depart. However, there was a young white leader 
among them who determined to make another effort to 
force the fort to surrender. 

This was Simon Girty, — known far and wide to the 
border people of that day as the "White Renegade," — a 
man despised by every one. When he was a 
boy, his father had been killed by Indians, and ^^^^^^^^ 
he himself had been adopted by them. He had grown up 
a savage, and chose to remain one. He possessed all the 
cunning cruelty of his foster brethren, and by his knowl- 
edge of English he became a power among them in their 
schemes to torture the Americans. He now made a speech 
to the fort's defenders. He spoke of the numbers with 
him, and of the reenforcements and artillery that were ex- 
pected; but he told them that if they would surrender 
they would not be harmed. The Kentuckians knew that 
their rude fortifications could not withstand cannon; but 
they could not be intimidated. 

One of their young men, Aaron Reynolds, answered 
Girty in a bold, bantering spirit that won the admiration of 
his associates. He assured Girty that they were not at all 
afraid of his artillery or of his numbers ; that, as for the 
latter, all the country was coming to their assistance. 



46 PIONEER DAYS 

Girty knew this, as did the Indians, and they concluded 
it would be the part of wisdom to leave ; but they did all 
the injury possible, destroying the fields and killing hun- 
dreds of cattle, sheep, and hogs. On the following morn- 
ing, they took their departure, having had five of their 
number slain and several wounded. Four of the whites 
were killed, and three injured. 

It did not take long to gather the riflemen of Kentucky. 
They answered the summons for assistance as hurriedly 
Gathering of as did the clansmen of Scotland the signal of 
the riflemen ^^^ ^ ^^^.^ cross." ^ On the aftemoon of the 
day the Indians left Bryan's Station, 182 men, many of 
them commissioned officers, mustered there under the 
command of Colonel John Todd, the ranking officer of 
Kentucky, Lieutenant Colonels Trigg and Boone, and 
Majors McGary, Harlan, and Levi Todd. Without wait- 
ing for Colonel Logan, who was to follow as soon as 
possible with the forces of Lincoln County, they pushed 
on the trail of the Indians, and overtook them near the 
Blue Licks, on the morning of August 19. They halted 
and held a council of war. The Licking River lay be- 
tween them and the enemy. Should they cross and open 
the attack at once, or should they await the arrival of 
Logan's troops ? 

The prudent decision was cast in favor of the latter 
course, when Major McGary, an impulsive man, filled with' 
a passionate hatred of all Indians because his son had been 

1 In the border warfare of Scotland, *' an ancient method of gathering the 
people was by sending the ' fiery cross ' through the country. This mysterious 
symbol of haste and danger was formed of yew, first set on fire and then 
quenched in the blood of a goat. Every man who received it was bound to 
pass on with it through torrents, or over mountains, by day or night, until 
another took it off his hands." See, also, The Gathering, III. Canto, T/ie 
Lady of the Lake. 



DIVISION OF THE COUNTY 



47 



killed by some of them, plunged forward into the river, 
waving his hat over his head and shouting : *' Let all who 
are not cowards follow me!" Immediately, Battle of the 
as if fired by his taunt, the impatient troops ^^"® ^^^^^ 
rushed after him. The sober officers had no alternative 
but to follow. Soon the battle began. From the first the 
advantage was with the enemy, because of superior num- 




McGary in the River 



bers. Colonel Trigg was killed, then Harlan with nearly 
all his advance guard was swept away. John Todd and 
Boone tried to rally the men, until Todd himself was shot 
down. Then a wild panic took place. Leaving the dead 
on the field of battle, every one attempted to escape. 

The fighting had lasted only about five minutes, and in 
that time the Kentuckians had lost seventy of their bravest 



48 pioni:er days 

soldiers, twelve had been wounded, and seven captured. 
The loss on the other side was insignificant in corn- 
After the parison. Several days later. Colonel Logan 
battle arrived at the scene of the tragedy with four 
hundred men, — a force large enough to have completely 
overwhelmed the Indians. But all was over now. Nothing 
remained to do but to bury the dead where they had 
fallen. By the rash act of one man was brought about the 
greatest disaster that had ever befallen Kentucky. 

It is impossible to describe the anguish of that time. 
Sorrow and wailing prevailed everywhere. For weeks 
the women could not be consoled. But the unconquerable 
Kentuckians did not long rest in their mourning. The 
blow must be retaliated. Troops quickly gathered at the 
Falls under Colonel Floyd and at Bryan's Station under 
Colonel Logan. Uniting at the mouth of the Licking 
under General Clark, they marched rapidly into the 
Indian country. On the loth of November, 1782, the 
Miami towns were burnt to the ground. Warning had 
been given the Indians, and they escaped into the woods ; 
but all their valuable property was destroyed. From 
village to village, the mighty force of Kentuckians swept 
with their desolating firebrands. At last the Indians were 
conquered. Though, for ten years longer, occasionally a 
few straggling savages would disturb the security of the 
settlers, Kentucky never again suffered any serious Indian 
invasion. 

RECAPITULATION 



Kentucky County divided. 

Jefiferson, Fayette, and Lincoln coun- 
ties. 

Military officers and surveyors ap- 
pointed 



Great eagerness to obtain lands. 
Indians preparing for war. 
Samuel Wells's magnanimity. 
Estill pursues a band of Indians. 
A young girl killed at his fort. 



DIVISION OF THK COUNTY 



49 



Indians overtaken near Mount Ster- 
ling. 

Estill's defeat. 

McGee and Caldwell's army of over 
one thousand Indians. 

A false alarm changes the course of 
the army. 

A smaller force marches into Ken- 
tucky. 

Attack on Bryan's Station. 

Heroic women supply the fort with 
water. 

The siege begun. 

Runners summon assistance. 

Indians fail to burn the fort. 

Girty attempts to frighten the men 
into surrendering. 

Aaron Reynolds's fearless answer. 
KENT. HIST. — 4 



Indians do great damage before de- 
parting. 

The riflemen of Kentucky gather. 

One hundred and eighty-two men at 
Bryan's Station. 

The officers of the company. 

The Indians are pursued. 

Council of war held. 

A prudent decision made. 

McGary's rash act. 

Battle of the Blue Licks. 

Terrible slaughter of the whites. 

Great anguish caused. 

The blow retaliated. 

Village after village destroyed. 

The Indians are conquered. 

No more serious invasions of Ken 
tucky. 



II — THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPEND- 
ENCE, 1782-1792 

CHAPTER V 

THE DISTRICT OF KENTUCKY, 1 782-1 784 

Beyond the borders of Kentucky, the Confederated 
Colonies were passing through their victorious conflict for 
K ntu k 's independence from Great Britain — six terrible 
struggle for years of ceascless warfare from the battle at 

existence 

Lexington, 1775, to the surrender of Lord 
Cornwallis at Yorktown, 1781. Cut off from the East by 
the high wall of the Cumberland Mountains, separated 
from the neighboring regions of the Northeast, the North, 
and the West by a connected system of waters, Kentucky 
was waging alone, unaided by continental arms and con- 
tinental supplies, an equally terrible conflict. In the his- 
tory of this era, too little recognition has been made of 
this struggle, whose successful issue gave to the nation a 
strong, faithful State, and opened the way for the con- 
quest of the vast, rich West. 

At Paris, France, on the 30th of November, 1782, the 
preliminary treaty of peace between the United States and 
Peace with Great Britain was signed. There were no 
England ocean cables in those days, no telegraph lines, 

no railroads, no postal service. Slowly the news reached 

so 



THE DISTRICT OF KENTUCKY 5 1 

the far-away land of Kentucky, told by traveler to trav- 
eler, or written in letters which were borne to friends by 
immigrants to the country. But early in the following 
spring the cheering fact was known. 

At this time there were less than thirty thousand people 
in Kentucky. Now the growth became very rapid. By 
1790, the population had increased to more i^niigration to 
than seventy-five thousand. The long war Kentucky 
which had just closed had left the Atlantic States impov- 
erished. The fertile lands of Kentucky offered an allur- 
ing prospect to families whose fortunes had been thus 
injured. From Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and the 
Carolinas, especially from Virginia, came this great influx 
of people to Kentucky. Of course there were some men 
among them of low character and slender ability ; but the 
majority of them were clever, educated people of moral 
strength, who were notable even in that most remarkable 
epoch of American history. 

Among them were officers whose military genius had 
hastened the victory of the Revolution ; soldiers whose 
unselfish loyalty had aided the cause ; and young men of 
talent, fresh from the colleges of the East. Their names 
will fill the pages of the following period. The men whose 
rare courage and entertaining adventures stirred us in the 
story of the pioneer days, have passed away ; either death 
has come to them, or they have finished their great work. 
Only one or two recur in the narrative of the public affairs 
of the new era opening before us. 

By an act of the Virginia legislature the three counties, 
Jefferson, Fayette, and Lincoln, were united in 1783 and 
Kentucky District was established. A district „ ^ , 

■^ Kentucky 

court was erected, and John Floyd, Samuel District 
McDowell, and George Muter were appointed 



52 THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 

judges. Walker Daniel was also commissioned attorney- 
general, and John May was selected to be the clerk of the 
court. 

Shortly after his appointment, John Floyd, the vigorous, 
intellectual pioneer, was killed by an Indian. He had 
The District fought, unscathed, through the terrible border 
judges wars, and now, in the time of peace, riding 

unguardedly in the woods near his home, wearing his scar- 
let wedding coat, — a definite mark for the savages, — he 
received his death wound. It is a curious coincidence that 
two other members of this district court, pioneers like 
Floyd, met a similar death, — Walker Daniel in 1784, John 
May in 1790. The other judges were Virginians, whom 
the close of the war brought to Kentucky. They had 
been officers in the Revolution and each bore the rank of 
colonel. Their recognized worth and ability are indicated 
by their appointment to this position of trust and dignity. 
We shall have need to refer to them frequently in the fol- 
lowing pages. 




An Ohio River Flatboat 



On the third day of March, 1783, the court was opened 
at Harrodsburg ; but there being no house large enough at 
Founding of that place for its accommodation, it adjourned 
Danville ^^ ^ church six miles away. One of its first 

official acts was to order a log courthouse to be built at 
some safe place near Crow's Station (about ten miles from 



THE DISTRICT OF KENTUCKY 



53 



Harrodsburg), and a jail also, of *' hewed or sawed logs at 
least nine inches thick." The location was wisely chosen ; 
it was on the Wilderness Road, the great highway through 
Kentucky, and within the famous Blue Grass region. From 
this judicial beginning grew the town of Danville, which 
became the seat and center of all the public affairs of the 

District, and whose 
early history suggests 
so many picturesque 




Pack Horses 



and interesting events. Each town in Kentucky has its 
particular tone. Danville may be characterized as sober 
and intellectual, self-respecting in the management of its 
own affairs, and unworldly. 

Security and hope prevailed in Kentucky District, and 
its reputation increased abroad. Flatboats 

^n 1 • 1 • • , 1 -,. Prosperity 

filled With nnmigrants were constantly landnig 

at the Falls (Louisville), in the northwestern part of the 



54 



THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 



Brodhead's 

store 



settled region, and at Limestone (now Maysville), in the 
northeast. Heavily laden pack horses brought a contin- 
ued stream of settlers through Cumberland Gap, over the 
Wilderness Road. 

At Louisville, Daniel Brodhead, an officer in the Revo- 
lution, who had recently come to Kentucky, opened a shop 
where all kinds of goods, imported from Philadelphia, 
were sold. The home-woven cotton gowns and sunbon- 
nets were replaced by gay-figured calicoes and 
straw bonnets. There were also more costly 
articles for gala days, — silks and parasols for the maidens, 
broadcloths and silk stockings for the men. A French- 
man, landing at the Falls 
in 1784, described a party 
of young people that he 
saw thus attired starting 
off for an excursion on 
the river. 

There is on record, 
also, an account of a 
party given by Mrs. 
Martha Donne to cele- 
brate the first crop of 
wheat raised at the 

Falls, in 1783. Early merry- 

The wheat was ^^^^^^s 
ground with a hand mill, 
sifted through a cambric 
handkerchief which Mistress Martha had brought from 
Philadelphia, shortened with raccoon fat, baked, and served 
for the refreshment of the guests. Thus early the town 
of Louisville took on its brilliant, fashionable, hospitable 
tone. 




James Wilkinson 



THE DISTRICT OF KENTUCKY 55 

In February, 1784, General James Wilkinson made his 
advent into Lexington as the representative of a mercan- 
tile firm in Philadelphia of which he was the head. Wil- 
kinson was brilliant in mind and affable in jameswiikin- 
manner, but corrupt in morals and selfish in so^'s advent 
character. He acted an important part in the political 
events of the period. Wilkinson's shop, like Brodhead's, 
was a great advantage to the neighboring region. 

At this time there were eight towns in Kentucky : 
Louisville and Bardstown, in Jefferson County ; Harrods- 
burg, Boonesborough, and Danville, in Lincoln Lexington's 
County ; and Lexington, Leestown, and Green- position 
ville, in Fayette County. Of these, Lexington was the larg- 
est. Never rapid, but always steady in growth, Lexington 
was advancing into that substantial business and social 
position which she has maintained until the present day. 
Her early interest in all things intellectual caused her to 
become the center of the literary culture of the District, 
and gave to her the title, — in the high-sounding phrase- 
ology of the time, — Athens of the West. 

Here John Filson ^ wrote the first history of Kentucky, 
which was likewise the first history of any portion of that 
vast region lying west of the Alleghanies. The fame of 
the " happy climate and plentiful soil " of 

^^■^ ... . John Filson 

Kentucky had reached Filson in his home in 
southern Pennsylvania, and he went thither to secure lands 
for himself. This was probably in the year 1782, when 
he was about thirty-six years old. He was a schoolmaster, 
and very well educated except in the matter of spelling 
and the use of capitals. He led a roaming, stirring life 
until his death in 1788. Shortly before that time, he had 

1 TA^ Life of John Filson. By Reuben T. Durrett. Filson Club Publi- 
cation No. I. 



56 



THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 



entered into a partnership with Matthias Denman and 
Colonel Robert Patterson (one of the founders of 

Lexington) to 
lay off a town 
where the present 
city of Cincinnati 
stands. Filson 

brought his 
Greek, Latin, and 
French knowl- 
edge into use to 
coin a name for 
his town : Losan- 
tiville — tJic city 
opposite tJic Dionth 
of the L icking. 
While out survey- 
ing, he became 
separated from 
his companions 
and was never 
again seen. He 
was killed either by the savage Indians, or by the beasts 
of the forest. 

Filson gained the information for his history, and the 
map with which it is illustrated, from a close intercourse 
First history with Daniel Boone, Levi Todd, James Harrod, 
of Kentucky Christopher Greenup, John Cowan, and Wil- 
liam Kennedy, whose " distinguished assistance " he grate- 
fully acknowledges. Beside the map, the history is made 
further entertaining by a narrative of " The Adventures of 
Colonel Daniel Boone," which the author learned from the 
old pioneer himself There was no printing press in Ken- 




John Filson 



THE DISTRICT OF KENTUCKY 5/ 

tucky at that time, so Filson carried- the manuscript of the 
history to Wilmington, Delaware, and that of the map to 
Philadelphia, where the book was published in 1784. One 
year later it was translated into French by M. Parraud, 
and published in Paris. This little book is now very rare 
and valuable. 

We have noticed the early desire of Kentuckians for 
education. Thus far, all that had been possible were little 
private schools held within the stations. Now Transylvania 
we are to learn somethine: of the first school university 

... founded 

or college in the West. In 1780, the Virginia 
legislature passed an act to establish such a school in 
Kentucky as soon as the condition of the country should 
permit. An endowment of eight thousand acres of land 
was given to it and thirteen trustees were appointed. 
In 1783, the trustees were increased to twenty-five and the 
endowment of land to twenty thousand acres. The school 
was to be called Transylvania Seminary, and the trustees 
were to hold their first meeting at Crow's Station (Dan- 
ville) the second Monday in November of that same year. 
The trustees were influential men in the District. The 
names of those who attended the first meeting have been 
preserved for us. They are John Craig, Walker Daniel, 
Willis Green, Christopher Greenup, Robert Johnson, Sam- 
uel McDowell, David Rice, James Speed, Isaac Shelby, 
and Caleb Wallace. The Reverend David Rice was 
elected chairman of the board. " Father Rice," as he 
was commonly called, had lately arrived in Kentucky 
from Virginia. He was the first Presbyterian preacher in 
the District, an earnest man, and well educated for that 
day, being a graduate of Nassau Hall, afterward Princeton 
College. 

At this first meeting, the trustees did little but grow 



58 



THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 



more enthusiastic concerning the advantages of education„ 
Their uncultivated lands gave them no money with which 
either to buy a schoolhouse or to pay teachers. Two 
years later, however, the seminary was opened at the 
home of the chairman, near Danville, and, in 1788, it was 
removed to Lexington. Before long, theological differ- 
ences arose in the school, and, in 1796, the Presbyterians 
withdrew their support and established Kentucky Acad- 
emy, at Pisgah. But in 1798 all disagreements were 
adjusted, and the rival institutions were united at Lexing- 
ton under the name "Transylvania University." 



RECAPITULATION 



Kentucky's unaided struggle during 
the Revolution era. 

Her important service to the nation. 

Treaty of peace, November 30, 1782, 
proclaimed in Kentucky the fol- 
lowing spring. 

High class of immigrants. 

Pioneers pass away. 

New names appear in public affairs. 

Kentucky District established, 1783. 

Samuel McDowell and George Muter. 

Judiciary appointments. 

Floyd, Daniel, and May murdered by 
Indians. 



Court opened at Harrodsburg. 
Removed to Crow's Station. 
Danville founded. 
Characteristics of Danville. 
Prosperity in the District. 
Brodhead's store. 
Louisville's flourishing condition 
Early merrymakings. 
Wilkinson's arrival in Kentucky. 
Lexington's substantial position. 
John Filson comes to Kentucky. 
Filson's first history of the region. 
Transylvania Seminary established 
Becomes Transylvania University. 



CHAPTER VI 

BEGINNING OF THE STRUGGLE, 1 784-1 786 

The security of the Kentuckians was beginning to be 
disturbed. The country which the Americans wrested 
from Great Britain consisted of the Atlantic Military 
States, extending: from Canada to the thirty- posts in the 

. Northwest 

first degree of latitude, and Kentucky and the 
Illinois country, which the pioneers had won. Off in the 
Northwest, — far away then, but now at the very threshold 
of that vast region, which has become thickly settled, — at 
and about Detroit, the British still held the military sta- 
tions which they had gained from the French. In their 
treaty of peace with the United States the British had 
promised to surrender these posts ; but, because of cer- 
tain complications, they now refused to comply with their 
agreement. 

When the news of this fact reached Kentucky, great 
fears of Indian hostilities were felt. We have learned that 
the Indians had been instigated to attacks Indian 
upon the Kentuckians by the British. If the hostilities 

. -^ anticipated 

British Still held stations in America, then the 
Indians would still be urged to warfare. Virginia was far 
away from Kentucky — too far to send her assistance in 
time of trouble. But as Kentucky was not independent, 
no military expedition could be undertaken beyond the 
borders of the District unless so ordered by the Virginia 

* 59 



6o THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 

government. The question of asking for separation from 
Virginia was continually discussed. 

The Congress of the Confederation of States did not 
advise any attempt to exterminate the Indians ; but rec- 
causes of In- ommended a peaceful course of action toward 
dian hostilities ^j^^^^^ j^ ^^-^^ ^^^^ Commissioners were ap- 
pointed to treat with the various tribes to induce them to 
recognize the authority of the victorious States. But cer- 
tain Indians on the east of the Miami River, who had been 
induced against their will to enter into a treaty, still re- 
tained their animosity toward the Kentuckians ; and certain 
others farther to the west, who had never entered into 
any treaty, were likewise inflamed at the thought of the 
Americans possessing their lands. Furthermore, law- 
less men in Kentucky, who believed there could be no 
good in any Indian and that it was never well to let 
one live, would sometimes kill those that were harmless. 
The revengeful savages retaliated by murdering innocent 
white men. 

Information came to Colonel Benjamin Logan that a 
serious invasion by the Cherokees might be expected. 
Meeting of mil- General Clark had been retired. Colonel 
itary officers Logan was now the ranking officer of Ken- 
tucky. Accordingly, in November, 1784, he called, at 
Danville, an informal meeting, of the military officers of 
the District, to consider the manner of resisting the an- 
ticipated attack. This meeting agreed that the Kentucki- 
ans must passively await the inroads of the savages, as 
they had no authority among themselves to order an expe- 
dition into the Indian country in order to repel the inva- 
sion. Therefore it was resolved that it would be wise to 
call for the election of one delegate from each of the 
militia companies in the District, who should meet in con- 



BEGINNING OF rilE STRUGGLE 



6i 



vention to consider the subject of seeking independence 
from Virginia. 

As there was no printing press in Kentucky, a circular 
address setting forth the facts was many times copied and 
distributed among the people. We can picture the Ken- 
tuckians, chafing under a sense of restraint as they alertly 
listened for the war whoop of the Indians. 

At Danville, on December 27, 1784, the first convention 
for separation met, and decided by a large majority that 
the dano:ers to which the District was subject ^. ^ 

c5 -' First conven- 

could be remedied only by its becoming an tionfor 

. , . ^ ^ , ... ., independence 

mdependent State. But the subject as it pre- 
sented itself to the people at that time was one of grave 
importance. It demanded calm, deliberate action. There- 
fore a second convention was called for May 23, 1785. 

The second convention duly assembled at Danville and 
elected Judge Samuel McDowell president, and Thomas 
Todd secretary. The matter 
was again presented and con- 
sidered with the most earnest 
deliberation, and it was again 
decided that sepa- 
ration was neces- 
sary. A petition 
to the Virginia Assembly was 
prepared as well as an address 
to the people of the District. 
The former w^as calm, the 



Second conven 
tion for inde- 
pendence 



latter inflaming in tone. It 




Samuel McDowell 



was written by General James 
Wilkinson ; he was not a member of the convention, but 
his brilliant, florid style had won him the admiration of the 
Kentuckians. The convention had full power to apply 



62 THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 

immediately to Virginia for action in the matter ; but with 
surprising caution it forbore to do this, and, in order that 
the will of the people might be known positively, called 
for a third convention to ratify what had already been done, 

Kentuckians, when they act individually, are generally im- 
pulsive, often hot-tempered and rash in their deeds; when 
Prudence of the they act in concert, they are deliberate, prudent, 
Kentuckians ^^^ ^jgg jj^ their decisions. They are people 
of intellect. The individual standing alone acts from 
emotion before he has had time to think. The individual 
as a part of a body of men cannot act on his own impulse. 
Thus opportunity is gained for reason to assert itself and 
to assume control. This fact should be borne in mind ; the 
truth of it will be proved as we continue. 

The third convention assembled in August, 1785, and 
elected the same president and secretary that had served 
Third conven- i^i the former conventions, — Samuel McDowell 
*^°^ and Thomas Todd. They were reelected at 

each succeeding convention. Wilkinson managed to have 
himself elected a member, and now began his scheming, 
dazzling career in Kentucky. The calm petition to the 
Virginia Assembly was discarded for one he prepared, 
** which was less a petition than a demand." The chief 
justice of the District, George Muter, and the attorney- 
general, Hary Innes, were appointed to present this peti- 
tion to the Virginia Assembly. 

In spite of the tone of the petition, the State of Vir- 
ginia passed an act setting forth the conditions upon which 
First act of the Separation might take place. They were 
separation ^^ follows I Delegates were to be elected to a 
fourth convention, which should meet in Danville, Septem- 
ber, 1786, to determine whether it was the will of the 
people of the District to be erected into an independent 



BEGINNING OF THE STRUGGLE 63 

State. If such were their will, they were to fix upon a date 
later than September i, 1787, when the authority of Vir- 
ginia should forever cease. But this was to take place 
provided "that prior to the ist day of June, 1787, the 
United States in Congress assembled shall consent to the 
erection of the said District into an independent State, and 
shall agree that the new State shall be admitted into the 
Federal Union." 

The majority of Kentuckians regarded this act of 
the Virginia Assembly as reasonable, and submissively 
bore the delay in the longed-for separation, court and 
But there were others who received it with country parties 
opposition, and in whom it caused the greatest irritation. 
Of these Wilkinson was the recognized leader. The 
party he represented was called the Court party, on 
account of the official position of its members. Wilkinson 
now offered himself as a candidate for delegate from 
Fayette County to the fourth convention. Humphrey 
Marshall, a representative of the opposite faction, which 
was called the Country party, was the contending candi- 
date. 

Great excitement prevailed in this county. The elec- 
tions were not then conducted as rapidly as they are 
to-day, — they lasted five days. On the first day, Wilkin- 
son was put forward by his friends to speak to the people. 
He urged them to disregard the act of Virginia and to 
declare themselves independent at once. Marshall an- 
swered him in a sensible, logical speech. Wilkinson's 
speech was, as usual, showy and oratorical. The election 
closed, and Wilkinson was found to have obtained the 
larger number of votes. 

The great dreaded Indian invasion did not take place ; 
but serious distress was caused throughout the District by 



64 



THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 



petty depredations of small parties of Indians. The Ken- 
tuckians complained to Virginia, and Virginia petitioned 
Self-protection Congress to raise troops to protect this frontier 
authorized region. But at the time about which we are 
studying, the Congress of the Confederation of States was 
not so powerful a body as the Congress of to-day. It 
could do little more than recommend certain measures to 




Indian Depredations. 

the different States ; it had no ability to cause them to be 
carried out. However, Congress granted the Kentuckians 
the privilege of protecting themselves. 

In accordance with this permission, early in September, 
1786, more than one thousand troops collected 
at Clarkesville (opposite Louisville), with the 
intention of attacking the Wabash Indians liv- 
ing in the present State of Indiana. They were organ- 



Expeditions 

of Clark and 
Logan 



BEGINNING OF THE STRUGGLE 



65 



ized under General George Rogers Clark. Colonel Benja- 
min Logan was sent back to Kentucky to raise volunteers 
for an expedition against the Shawnee Indians living in 
the present State of Ohio. Logan quickly secured four or 
five hundred men. With this force he proceeded to the 
Indian towns on the Mad River, burned them to the ground, 
and took seventy or eighty prisoners. He returned in 
twenty days, after a successful expedition. Unfortunately, 
General Clark's expedition proved fruitless. The provi- 
sions were delayed on their way to Vincennes, where his 
troops were stationed. Insubordination took place. The 
great general had lost control over the men who served 
under him, and many of them deserted. 

When the time came for the fourth convention to as- 
semble, so many of the delegates were absent with Clark 
and Logan that a quorum 
could not be obtained. 
Those who were at home, 
however, met every day, and 
adjourned until the following 
Postponement January, when 
of separation ^^^ neccssary 

number were present. The 

condition required by the 

Virginia Assembly for the 

separation was that prior to 

the first day of June, 1787, 

the Congress of the United 

States should have agreed 

to admit the new State into 

the Federal Union. It was now too short a time, in 

those days of slow travel, for the Kentuckians to take 

the necessary steps toward this end. Therefore, they 

KENT. HIST. — 5 




John Marshall 



66 THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 

petitioned the Virginia Assembly to alter that clause in 
the act. Their petition was presented by John Marshall 
(afterward the great chief justice), who strongly urged his 
request. But the Assembly did not see fit to grant it. 
Consequently, another act was passed which fixed the time 
for the separation to take place as January i, 1789, instead 
lof September i, 1787. 

John Marshall's letter bearing this fact reached Danville 
while the convention was still assembled. It is needless 
Result of the ^o describe the disappointment it brought the 
disappointment Kcntuckians. Virginia had acted as seemed 
to her right ; but we can well understand how her long 
postponement of the separation might have appeared to 
restless men, impatient of delay, like indifference to 
their sufferings. Throughout the District, there was a 
growing resentment towards Virginia. This was inflamed 
by certain ambitious politicians, notably by General Wil- 
kinson. But in spite of the passions of some, reason and 
dignity controlled the meeting, and it adjourned submissive 
to the act of Virginia. Another convention had been 
ordered for the following September. 

Shortly after this, another incident occurred which led 
\Xo further distrust of Virginia's good feeling toward Ken- 
virginia tucky : A man was killed by Indians in 

misunderstood Lincoln County. Benjamin Logan, the com- 
mandant of that county, was absent ; but his brother 
quickly raised a company and pursued the murderers into 
Tennessee. The Indians were overtaken, several of them 
were slain, and the horses they had stolen were captured. 
On pushed the victorious Logan and his men, like heroes 
of the Round Table, seeking further adventures. They 
discovered the trail of another band of Indians, came upon 
them, killed seven, and captured their horses and game. 



BEGINNING OF THE STRUGGLE 



67 



Now it happened that these latter were peaceable tribes 
living under a treaty with the United States. Intense 
wrath consequently prevailed among the Indians. They 
complained to the governor of Virginia, and he directed 
the attorney-general of the District, Hary Innes, to take 
the necessary steps *'to prevent and punish, if possible, 
all unjust violences." As this very reasonable direction 
was many times repeated it became exaggerated. Thus it 
came about that numbers of people in the District hon- 
estly believed that Virginia had commanded them not to 
protect themselves from the barbarities of the Indians. 
The Kentuckians were now about to enter upon a trial 
that would reveal their character. 



RECAPITULATION 



Treaty of peace not fulfilled. 

Military posts in the Northwest still 
held by Great Britain. 

Fears of Indian sieges felt in Ken- 
tucky. 

The Indians are aided by the British. 

Kentucky's dependent position. 

Separation from Virginia discussed. 

Miami and other Indians are hostile. 

Lawless Kentuckians cause trouble. 

Great Indian invasion dreaded. 

Colonel Logan's called meeting of 
military officers. 

They order an election of delegates 
to a convention. 

First convention meets at Danville. 

Considers separation from Virginia 
desirable. 

Another convention called. 

Second convention considers separa- 
tion necessary, and prepares a pe- 
tition to the Virginia Assembly. 



Wilkinson prepares the address to the 
people. 

The convention shows rare cau- 
tion. 

Character of Kentuckians. 

A third convention held. 

Virginia passes the first act for sepa- 
ration. 

The act not satisfactory to many 
Kentuckians. 

Court and Country parties. 

Wilkinson advocates illegal separa- 
tion. 

Congress allows Kentucky to protect 
herself from Indian inroads. 

Clark's expedition unsuccessful; Lo- 
gan's successful. 

Fourth convention set for Septem- 
ber, 1786. 

No quorum obtained. 

Meets and adjourns every day until 
January. 



68 



THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 



Too late then to comply with the 

conditions of the act. 
Virginia petitioned to alter the act. 
She refuses, but passes another act. 
John Marshall informs the convention 

of this fact. 
Kentuckians grievously disappointed. 
Some resent Virginia's course toward 

Kentucky. 



The convention submits. 

John Logan's expedition causes trou- 
ble. 

Virginia forbids all unjust violences 
towards Indians. 

Virginia's action is misunderstood by 
many. 

Her good feeling toward Kentucky is 
momentarily doubted. 



CHAPTER VII 

THE SPANISH CONSPIRACY, 1 786-1 788 

The southern territory of the United States extended to 
the 31st degree of latitude. Below this line the Spanish 
still held the dominion they had exercised since the dis- 
covery of the continent. In 15 13, Ponce de Spanish 
Leon landed on the southeastern coast, and "^on^i^^o^s 
claimed in the name of the Spanish king a region of in- 
definite extent, to which he gave the name of Florida. 
Here he planted a short-lived colony, composed of men 
who had come to drink of the fabulous fountain of immor- 
tal youth. Through this region the intrepid and ambitious 
De Soto had led his deluded followers in their hopeless 
search for gold, only to find his grave in the Mississippi 
River. Here the Huguenots had sought refuge from 
religious persecutions in France, and here Menendez had 
established the first permanent Spanish colony at St.' 
Augustine, in 1565, years before the English had settled 
at Jamestown or the Pilgrim Fathers had landed at Ply- 
mouth. It was a land of warmth and beauty, of luxuriant 
vegetation, of stagnating civilization. Soon the vigorous 
Americans were to drive out their weaker neighbors, but 
not before the Spanish king had made an adroit effort 
to hold and increase his dominions in the New World. 

Spanish possessions lay on both sides of the Missis- 
sippi River. The United States demanded the right to 

69 




70 THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 

navigate that river. Spain refused to concede this privi- 
lege. John Jay, of New York, secretary for foreign 
Jay's affairs, was most anxious to conclude a treaty 

proposition ^-^j^ Spain. Furthermore, he was ignorant of 
the great growth of the Western Country, as Kentucky and 
the neighboring region was then called. 
In the summer of 1786, he went before 
Congress and proposed a "project" 
which he hoped would bring about the 
desired treaty. It was this : that the 
United States should agree to forbear 
to navigate the Mississippi below the 
southern boundary for twenty or thirty 
years. To this, the seven northern 
joj^j^ J States voted in the affirmative, the six 

southern States, in the negative ; and 
Virginia immediately passed resolutions in opposition to 
the proposition. It required the concurrence of nine 
States to carry such a motion. Nevertheless, Mr. Jay, 
acting upon the decision of the majority, made his proposi- 
tion to Gardoqui, the Spanish minister; but it was rejected 
with scorn. 

These transactions took place in far-away New York. 
There were only a few citizens in Kentucky who knew of 
them shortly after their occurrence. Most of 
Septiimof the the people were in ignorance of the truth con- 
action of cernins: them. The action of Congress was 

Congress o ^ o 

misrepresented. Already Wilkinson had done 
much to inflame the people against the Federal govern- 
ment. Excitement in the District was rising to a high 
degree. There was no other way of transportation except 
by water. Kentucky's present and future prosperity 
seemed to depend upon her being able to carry her 



THE SPANISH CONSPIRACY 7 1 

products on the Ohio River into the Mississippi, and thus 
to the markets of the world. It was a subject of vital 
importance. A meeting of citizens was held at Danville 
in May, 1787, to discuss the navigation question. 

In the early summer, Wilkinson gathered together all 
the tobacco and other products he could buy, and went to 
New Orleans, ostensibly on a trading expedi- The Spanish 
dition. His real object, however, was to offer ^^^^P^^^^^y 
his services to Spain in order to restore his now reduced 
fortune. If he failed in this effort, his intention was to 
turn to England for the same purpose. At New Orleans, 
an order was given to seize his cargo; but the cunning 
general sought an interview with Miro, the Spanish gov- 
ernor of the province. He explained his visit. Then he 
was treated with the utmost courtesy. He was allowed to 
sell his goods, for which a high price was paid ; and per- 
mission was granted to him to ship goods to New Orleans 
for sale. 

The evidence goes to prove that then and there Wilkin- 
son sold himself to Spain. ^ He bound himself to use all 
the influence in his power (and that influence was great) 
"to obtain the separation of Kentucky from the United 
States, and then to deliver the District thus separated into 
the hands of his Majesty the King of Spain, to become a 
province of that power." All privileges of trade were 
granted to Wilkinson, in order that he might prove to the 
people of Kentucky the advantages they would obtain by 
becoming Spanish subjects. A large sum of money was 
now advanced to him, and in the following February he 
returned to Lexington, to display the success of his trading 
venture, in a carriage drawn by four horses, and accom- 

l The Spanish Conspiracy. By Thomas Marshall Green. 



72 



THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 



panied by slaves as attendants. He gave brilliant balls, 
and the young people danced and praised the gallant host ; 




Wilkinson's Return to Lexington 



he gave fine dinners, and in the midst of the good cheer 
and flashing conversation the older men applauded the cap- 
tivating politician. 

In the meantime, a most notable undertaking had been 
accomplished. On the i8th day of August, 1787, John and 
The Kentucke Fielding Bradford issued at Lexington the first 
newspaper published in Kentucky, and the sec- 
ond west of the Alleghanies, to which they gave the name 
Kentucke Gazette. Accustomed as we are to a multiplicity of 
journals containing a wide range of information, it is hard for 
us to realize the general satisfaction and rejoicing occasioned 
by the appearance of this meager, quaint little sheet, still 
reverently preserved in the public library at Lexington. 



THE SPANISH CONSPIRACY 



73 



The fifth con- 
vention 




During Wilkinson's absence, the fifth convention assem- 
bled, September 17, 1787. It held a quiet session, and ad- 
journed submissive to the act of Virginia, after having pre- 
pared a petition to Congress, 
in which the 31st of Decem- 
ber, 1788, was fixed upon as 
the time when the authority of 
Virginia over Kentucky should 

terminate. The 

people of the Dis- 
trict were now informed of 
the proceedings of the con- :, 
vention through the columns 
of the Gazette. ' ^ 

John Brown was COmmis- Early Prmtmg press 

sioned to present to Congress Kentucky's application 
for admission into the Confederation of States, by which 
name the thirteen original colonies were at 
first called. John Brown,^ the son of a Pres- 
byterian clergyman of Augusta County, Virginia, had 
come to Kentucky in 1783, the year which brought 
over so many men who acted important parts in the 
public affairs of the period. He had been a member 
from the District in the Virginia Senate, and was 
now going to take his seat in Congress, to which 
he had just been appointed. Unfortunately, no quorum 
in Congress was obtained until late in January, 1788. 
Kentucky's application was not presented until the 29th 
of February. 

From the opening of Congress the absorbing interest had 
been the question of the adoption of the new Federal consti- 



John Brown 



^ The Political Beginnings of Kentucky. By John Mason Brown. 



74 THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 

tution, which had recently been prepared and offered to the 
Constitution Several States to be voted upon. It was a topic 
adopted of deep importance. If this constitution were 

adopted, — its supporters wisely foresaw, — a new, strong 
Union would be established in place of the old, weak 
Confederation then existing. No attention was paid to 
Kentucky's application until the end of May. While 
Congress was slowly considering this all-important matter 
for Kentucky, news was received that New Hampshire 
had voted in favor of the constitution. Nine States — 
enough to cause its adoption — were now secured, and 
Virginia was soon to add her ratification. Of the Ken- 
tucky delegates in the Virginia Assembly only three voted 
in the affirmative. They were Robert Breckinridge, Rice 
Bullock, and Humphrey Marshall. 

In Kentucky the new constitution did not meet with 
hearty acceptance. This fact was due to a misapprehen- 
The Political ^^^^ ^^ ^^^ situation. The people were afraid 
^^"^ that if a stronger central government were es- 

tablished, their right to the navigation of the Mississippi 
would be bartered away in order to secure a treaty with 
Spain. The different points contained in it were freely 
discussed, night after night, at the meetings of the Politi- 
cal Club, an organization that was founded in Danville 
in 1786, and existed until 1790. Many of the prominent 
citizens of the neighborhood were members of the club, 
and matters of vital interest to the District were considered 
by them with an ability that proves the Kentuckians of 
that time to have been a remarkable people. The minutes 
of the club, which were carefully preserved by the secre- 
tary, Thomas Speed, have recently been published. 

1 TAe Political Club. By Thomas Speed- Filson Club Publication No. 9. 



THE SPANISH CONSPIRACY 75 

As the new constitution was now adopted, the Congress 
of the old Confederation, then in session, resolved that it 
had no authority to act upon the application ^ppi^.^tion re- 
of Kentucky. It was therefore referred to the ferredtonew 
consideration of the new government. The 
resolutions were conveyed to the sixth convention, assem- 
bled at Danville, July 28, 1788. About the same time, a 
letter was received by Judge Samuel McDowell, the presi- 
dent of the convention, from John Brown, the congress- 
man, which contained information concerning the act of 
Congress, and also an account of an interview Brown had 
had with Gardoqui, the Spanish minister. In this conver- 
sation the Spaniard had " stated that if the people of 
Kentucky would erect themselves into an independent 
State and appoint a proper person to negotiate with him, 
he had authority for that purpose, and would enter into 
an arrangement with them for the exportation of their 
produce to New Orleans on terms of mutual advantage." 

It is not surprising that the acts of Congress created the 
utmost disappointment in Kentucky, after the tedious, now 
useless efforts which had been made to obtain Three classes 
independence. They did more, — they height- ^^ Kentucky 
ened the resentment of some of the people, and increased 
their doubt of the good disposition of the central govern- 
ment toward them. The northern States had been indif- 
ferent to the welfare of the Western Country, and there 
were many disinterested though unwise men in Kentucky, 
who were exasperated at the slow action of Congress in 
their affairs. Recognizing the necessity of the District's 
becoming an independent State, and the value of the per- 
mission to navigate the Mississippi River, they were will- 
ing to resort to revolutionary means in order to obtain 
these advantages. But there were others who had no 



76 THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 

thought of the good of the community, and acted solely 
from selfish interest. Whatever conflicting views may be 
held regarding the motives of some during this most con- 
fusing period, there can be no doubt of the falsity of Wil- 
kinson and Sebastian, — they are self-convicted. There 
was another class, to whom too much honor cannot be 
given, — those who in the midst of the excited passions of 
the time remained loyal to the government of the United 
States. The two former classes belonged to the Court 
party ; the latter, to the Country party. 

Still that controlling spirit of wise moderation (which 

has been pointed out in the second chapter of this period) 

held the convention back from any rash act. 

Temper of the ^ . . 

sixth conven- However, as an outgrowth of the prevailing 
excitement, it called for the election of dele- 
gates to a seventh convention, who should be empowered 
"to do and accomplish whatever, on a consideration of 
the state of the District, may in their opinion promote its 
interest." Now was Wilkinson's opportunity to lead the 
people to believe that it would " promote their interests " 
to become Spanish subjects; but like all schemers he 
worked slyly, never openly. 

Before the election of delegates to the seventh conven- 
tion, George Muter, chief justice of the District, published 
Judge Muter 's in the Gazette 2Ci\ address to the people. He 
address provcd that they had no authority to act for 

themselves independently of Virginia, and that by so doing 
they would be guilty of treason. He pointed out the evi- 
dent meaning of the resolution of the late convention. He 
showed that it clearly gave to the delegates of the next 
convention power to treat with Spain to obtain the naviga- 
tion of the Mississippi. He proved that such action would 
be contrary to the Federal constitution, and he therefore 



THE SPANISH CONSPIRACY 77 

suggested to the people of Fayette County that they should 
instruct their next delegates not to agree to frame a con- 
stitution and form of government without first obtaining 
the consent of the Virginia legislature and not to make 
any application for the navigation of the Mississippi other 
than to the legislature of Virginia or to the Congress of 
the United States. 

This had the desired effect. The contest in the other 
counties was quiet ; but in Fayette it was attended by great 
excitement. As usual, the election lasted five The Fayette 
days. It became evident that the Country election 
party was going to be completely victorious. The ever 
adroit Wilkinson, one of the candidates of the Court party, 
perceived the situation, and promptly announced that he 
would be guided in voting in the convention by the wishes 
of his constituents. This promise and his great popularity 
secured his election, while his associates were defeated. 
The other four delegates chosen were John Allen, Colonel 
Joseph Crockett, Colonel Thomas Marshall, and Judge 
Muter. 

The seventh convention assembled November 4, 1788. 
The most vital question in the life of Kentucky was about 
to be decided : whether she should determine seventh 
to submit to the recent act of Congress and convention 
take the necessary legal steps to obtain her separation 
from Virginia and admittance into the Union, or whether 
she should determine to separate herself illegally from 
Virginia and erect herself into an independent State. If 
the latter course were followed, the Spanish government 
had a good chance to obtain control of Kentucky. 

The forces in the convention were drawn up against 
each other. Let it not be supposed, however, that all 
those who favored violent separation from Virginia knew 



78 THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 

of, or sympathized with, Wilkinson's scheme to make 
Kentucky a Spanish province. At the outset a discussion 
arose as to the power which the convention possessed. 
The Court party contended that it had all power necessary 
to frame a constitution, to declare the District independent, 
etc. The Country party, on the contrary, strongly opposed 
every argument of this nature. 

Upon the day following this discussion Wilkinson made 
a speech before the convention. He dwelt feelingly upon 
Wilkinson's the dangers of Indian hostilities, and described 
speech brilliantly the advantages of the navigation of 

the Mississippi River, and pointed out the inability of Con- 
gress to obtain for Kentucky this benefit. He openly 
advocated the violent separation of Kentucky from Vir- 
ginia ; but he only hinted at his real scheme, — to deliver 
Kentucky when thus separated into the hands of the 
Spanish government. And all the while he watched the 
faces of his hearers to see what effect his adroit sugges- 
tions would have upon them. If he discovered satisfac- 
tion on their countenances, he would go further and declare 
his plan ; if he discovered disapproval, he had not com- 
mitted himself in words, and he could yet retreat. 

The majority of the convention were not only indisposed 
to listen to any overtures from Spain, but they were de- 
Loyaity of the cidedly loyal to the government of the United 
convention States, and opposed to an illegal separation 
from Virginia. Wilkinson misunderstood the Kentuckians. 
They applauded his showy oratory, but they were independ- 
ent in action and stanch in principle. They were thor- 
oughly aroused to an appreciation of the dangers which 
might arise from their dependent position, and of the fatal 
results of the Mississippi being closed to them. And yet 
they nobly resisted the temptation of benefits offered to 



THE SPANISH CONSPIRACY 79 

them by. Spain, and remained loyal to the country for 
which they had fought, and had been ready to give their 
lives. 

In the revulsion of feeling created by the sentiments 
thus boldly advocated by Wilkinson a resolution, offered 
by John Edwards and seconded by Thomas Turning point 
Marshall, was agreed to, which proved to be ^^ ^^^ contest 
the turning point in the contest. The resolution provided 
for the appointment of " a committee to draw up a decent 
and respectful address to the people of Virginia, for ob- 
taining the independence of the District of Kentucky 
agreeable to the late resolutions and recommendations of 
Congress." 

But even after this decisive indication of the loyal feel- 
ing of the convention had been given, other efforts were 
made by the opposite faction to carry their „ _ ^ _ 

J ^J^ J Further efforts 

object. Before the "decent and respectful" of the court 
address was accepted, Wilkinson offered a ^^^ ^ 
resolution that a committee be appointed to draft an ad- 
dress to the good people of the District urging them to 
furnish the convention at its next session with instruction 
how to proceed in this important subject of an independent 
government. 

This resolution was adopted, greatly to the fears of the 
party opposing illegal separation. Whereupon, Colonel 
Crockett, lately an officer of the Revolution patriotism 
and a stanch adherent of the Union, left the ^"umphs 
convention and hastened to Fayette County. He returned 
in two days, having obtained the signatures of several 
hundred citizens who were opposed to an illegal separa- 
tion. Wilkinson, who had given his promise to be guided 
by the will of his constituents, was obliged to submit. 
Patriotism carried the day. The address to the Virginia 



So 



tup: struggle for independence 



Assembly was accepted, and the convention adjourned to 
meet again the following July. 

This was the crisis in the life of Kentucky. It has been 

dwelt upon thus at length because no other event in her 

history so clearly reveals the character of the 

Loyalty -^ -^ 

characteristic people. Let every one who studies this subject 
en uc y Iq^^w that in the midst of high excitement thej 
Kentuckians acted deliberately and soberly; in the midst 
of strong temptations they acted wisely and patriotically. 
Let him also learn that in Kentucky every individual has 
weight. Although Wilkinson did not abandon his scheme 
to separate Kentucky from the United States, and although 
his friend, Sebastian, after this received a pension from 
Spain for his efforts in that work, yet there was no further 
danger that Kentucky would become disloyal to the Union. 



RECAPITULATION 



Spanish possessions in America. 

Spain desires to hold the region. 

Owns both sides of the Mississippi 
below the 31st degree of latitude. 

Refuses navigation to the Ameri- 
cans. 

** Jay's project." 

Action of Congress on the subject 
misunderstood. 

The navigation necessary to Ken- 
tucky's prosperity. 

Excitement in the District. 

Meeting of citizens at Danville. 

Wilkinson goes to New Orleans. 

Allies himself with Spain. 

Right of trade, etc., granted him. 

He returns in state to impress the 
people. 

Ketitucke Gazette established. 

Fifth convention holds a quiet session. 



Fixes the time for separation. 

Proceedings published in the Gazette. 

John Brown, congressman of the Dis- 
trict. 

He presents Kentucky's petition. 

Congress is absorbed in other mat- 
ters. 

Pays no attention to the petition. 

New Federal constitution adopted. 

The petition is brought before the 
old Congress. 

Is referred to the new Congress. 

The sixth convention is informed of 
this fact. 

Brown's letter to McDowell. 

Gardoqui's proposition to Kentucky, 

Kentucky distracted because of her 
situation. 

Two classes in the Court party. 

The Country party loyal. 



THE SPANISH CONSPIRACY 



8l 



Wilkinson and Sebastian. 
The convention moderate in action. 
Dangerous resolutions are adopted. 
Muter's card points out the meaning 

of the resolutions. 
Effect upon the election in Fayette 

County. 
Wilkinson's promise and election. 
The vital question before the seventh 

convention. 
Illegal separation advocated. 

KENT. HIST. — 6 



Wilkinson's adroit speech. 

Convention opposed to his sugges- 
tions. 

Contrary resolutions carried. 

Wilkinson's further effort. 

Crockett's petition from Fayette 
County. 

Wilkinson obliged to submit. 

Victory of the loyal party. 

Kentucky's sober conduct. 

The people control. 



CHAPTER VIII 

THE END OF THE STRUGGLE, 1 788-1 792 

Still the struggle for statehood was not ended. No- 
where was there any official opposition to Kentucky's be- 
statehood not coming an independent member of the Union, 
yet attained neither within the District, in the Virginia 
Assembly, nor in the Congress of the United States. And 
yet, by some strange enchantment, it seemed impossible to 
accomplish the desired end. The fruitless conventions have 
been compared to " the card edifices of children which are 
no sooner erected than, at a breath, they are destroyed." 

No parallel occurs in history of such exasperating, need^ 
less delay in a worthy cause. The annals of history may 
be searched in vain, also, to find a parallel to the patience 
with which the high-spirited Kentuckians bore these trials, 
and to the loyalty which they cherished toward the govern- 
ment of their country. Kentucky's situation was isolated ; 
but the deep excitement which prevailed in the District 
concerning the separation and the navigation of the Mis- 
sissippi was known abroad. 

In the autumn of 1788, Dr. John Connolly appeared in 
Kentucky. He was the same Connolly for whom, in 1773, 
British lands had been surveyed at the Falls of the 

intrigue Ohio, where the city of Louisville now stands. 

He announced that he came to look after these lands, of 
which he had been deprived because he was a Tory. But in 
reality he was a British agent. His mission was to induce 

82 



THE END OF THE STRUGGLE 83 

Kentucky to withdraw from the Union and to throw her- 
self upon the protection of Great Britain, who would assist 
her with troops, ammunition, etc., to take possession of 
New Orleans, and thus to force the navigation of the 
Mississippi from Spain by arms. 

The fertile Kentucky country and the vast West con- 
nected with it were objects of desire to foreign kingdoms. 
Already it had been known to the people of the District 
that Great Britain stood ready with open arms to receive 
them. Connolly visited many prominent men in Louisville, 
and then went to Fayette County, where he held an inter- 
view with Colonel Thomas Marshall, a few days after the 
exciting seventh convention (November, 1788). But 
Marshall was strongly attached to the Federal government 
and a friend of Washington, the President elect of the 
United States. Dr. Connolly met with no encouragement, 
and the British intrigue came to an end. 

Still other acts were to be passed by the Virginia legisla- 
ture, and further conventions held in Kentucky, before the 
weary work of separation was over. The eighth other conven- 
convention, which assembled July 20, 1789, ^^°°^ 
objected to certain points in the third act of Virginia. A 
fourth act w^as then passed. To this, the ninth conven- 
tion, assembled July 26, 1790, agreed, and fixed the ist 
day of June, 1792, as the date when the separation should 
take place. This convention called for the election .of 
delegates to a tenth convention. 

Other acts regarding Kentucky were also passed by the 
Virginia legislature about this time. One sixth part of 
the surveyors' fees, formerly paid to William otiig^actsof 
and Mary Collesre (Viroinia), were ordered to .the Virginia 
u -^ i ^ ^ ^ c • AT ^-u Assembly 

be paid to 1 ransylvania bemmary. Also the 

county of Woodford was established, the last of the nine 



84 THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 

formed while Kentucky was a District. They were in 
order: Fayette, Jefferson, Lincoln, Nelson, Bourbon, 
Mercer, Madison, Mason, and Woodford. 

The last towns established during the colonial period 
were Bardstown and Hopewell. The latter was settled 
as Houston's Station, in 1776. In 1790, the name was 
changed to Paris. To-day it is the thriving center of the 
wealthy county of Bourbon. Many prominent men lived 
in and about Bardstown in the early times. There, in the 
cemetery, is the grave of poor John Fitch (bearing the 
date of his death, 1798), whose name is so pathetically 
connected with the invention of the steamboat. The town 
and surrounding neighborhood were settled largely by 
Maryland Cathohcs at the close of the Revolution. They 
were people of culture, and they have held the region to 
the present day, planting in it their institutions of learn- 
ing and religion. Thither fled Trappist monks from 
France, who founded the " Home of the Silent Brother- 
hood." Near by the pious Sisters of Loretto dwell in 
their convent of the Stricken Heart. 

The Presbyterians in Kentucky have already been dwelt 
upon. The Baptists entered Kentucky in the very begin- 
Eariy religious ^^^S ^^ i^s Settlement. The Rev. William 
denominations Hickman preached here as early as 1776; 
but it was not until i yS 1 that there existed an organized 
church. In September of that year, the Rev. Lewis 
Craig, and most of his congregation, left Spottsylvania 
County, Virginia, for Kentucky. ^ As they traveled, they 
stopped occasionally on the way to hold regular services. 
Thus they entered the District as an organized church. 

1 Other immigrants had attached themselves to the expedition. There 
were in all between five and six hundred. TAe Traveling Churchy by George 
W. Ranck. 



THE END OF THE STRUGGLE 



85 



The next in point of time were the Methodists, whose 
evangelistic spirit early led them forth to preach the Gos- 
pel in the new country. The Episcopahans had no church 
until many years after the District had become a State. 
That large and ever increasing denomination known under 
the broad appellation the Christian church had not yet 
taken its rise. 

Again the depressing account of Indian depredations 
must be continued. The people of the District had left 
the protection of the 
forts, and were now liv- 
ing in separated homes. 
The Indians no longer 
came in large numbers, 
but small parties would 
fall upon and murder 
Indian single indi- 

depredations yiduals, or 

several traveling to- 
gether. Men hunting 
game for their families 
were attacked. Men and 
women calmly going to 
church were killed or 
captured. Tragedies 
upon the Ohio River were especially frequent. Boats 
bearing travelers from, or settlers into, the District were 
seized, and the occupants were subjected to the most cruel 
tortures. Far and wide rang the cry of these distressing 
facts. Complaints were made to the President of the 
United States and to the secretary of war. In answer, 
the President assured the people that measures for their 
protection would be taken ; and the secretary of war 




Captured on the Way to Church 



86 



THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 



authorized the county Heutenants to call out scouts to 
guard the frontier. 




Kentucky Captives 



" At last the 
government of the United 
States had learned that 
treaties with Indians were 
of no avail, and that the only way to subdue them was to 
carry war home to them in their own country. General 
Harmar was now placed at the head of three hundred and 



THE END OF THE STRUGGLE 8/ 

twenty regulars of the United States army. Soon a force 
amounting to more than eleven hundred volunteers was 
collected in Kentucky, under Colonel John Hardin. These 
troops assembled at Fort Washington (where Cincinnati now 
stands), September 30, 1790, and marched to Harmar's 
the towns of the Miami Indians. Harmar had ^^^^^^ 
been an officer in the Revolution ; but he seems to have 
lost his military ability upon this expedition. He might 
have overawed and conquered the Indians by meeting 
them with his whole body of troops. But instead of doing 
this, twice he sent out small detachments, each time under 
the command of Colonel Hardin, and each time these were 
surprised and almost completely destroyed ; while not far 
away, the larger portion of the army remained calmly in 
camp. Harmar's defeat lost him his reputation, and made 
the Indians exultant and consequently more murderous 
toward the Kentuckians. 

Between the years 1783 and 1790, about fifteen hundred 
persons had been killed or taken captive within the Dis- 
trict, or on their way to it. Further efforts Local Board of 
were made to stop such tragedies. A local ^^ 
Board of War was appointed by Congress, which should 
have charge of the protection of the District. The men 
chosen for this position of trust were Colonel Isaac Shelby, 
the man who had turned the tide at Point Pleasant, 
and who had planned the scheme of attack which led to 
the decisive victory at King's Mountain ; General Charles 
Scott, also a tried officer of the Revolution ; Hary Innes, 
formerly attorney-general of the District, now judge of the 
Federal court ; Congressman John Brown ; and Benjamin 
Logan, well known to us as a pioneer. 

About this time General Arthur St. Clair, then governor 
of the Northwestern Territory, was appointed commander 



SS THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 

in chief of the army of the Northwest. Another expe- 
dition against the Miami Indians was planned. As a 
preparation for this serious undertaking two g^ ciair's ap- 
small, but successful, expeditions against the pointment 
Wabash Indians were arranged by the local Board of 
War, — the first under General Charles Scott, the second 
led by Colonel James Wilkinson. Their object was to 
subdue these Indians, so that they would not aid the 
Miami tribes. General St. Clair's appointment was not 
agreeable to the Kentuckians. While he was an honor- 
able man and a brave officer, he was old and infirm, and 
altogether unfitted for the projected campaign against the 
most formidable of Indian confederations. No volunteers 
offered in Kentucky. Therefore, one thousand unwilling 
men were drafted and placed under the command of 
Colonel William Oldham. Many of these deserted before 
reaching their destination. 

St. Clair was not aided by the government as he might 
have been.i By the day of the battle not more than f our- 
teen hundred men remained g^ ciair's de- 
in his army. Of these only *^^^ 
a small portion were regulars. The rest 
were dissatisfied, undisciplined troops, 
with whom a very capable leader would 
have found victory difficult. With St. 
Clair defeat was inevitable. On the 3d 
of November, 1791, the army was en- 
Arthur St. Clair camped on the eastern fork of the 
Wabash River. During the afternoon and evening, 
Indians were discovered in the vicinity, and were fre- 
quently shot at by the sentinels. St. Clair had been 

^ SA C/air^s Defeat. By Hon. Theodore Roosevelt. Harper's Magazine, 
February, 1896. 




THE END OF THE STRUGGLE 89 

expressly warned by Washington against a surprise, and 
yet he made no preparation for an attack. Consequently, 
just after sunrise, the next morning, when the Indians 
opened fire upon the army, there was the old story of a 
surprise, with all the panic and slaughter which usually 
follow. St. Clair and General Richard Butler, the second 
in command, courageously tried to rally their men, but in 
vain. The Indians were so hidden by the smoke of the 
artillery of the whites that they could not be seen. They 
seemed suddenly to spring out of the earth to shoot down 
the foe, and then to disappear. Most of the officers 
(among them, General Butler) were killed, and about two 
thirds of the army. Then only one thought inspired the 
rest, — every man made a mad rush to save his own life, 
and the Indians followed in close pursuit. 

The previous February, the Congress of the United 
States had agreed to admit Kentucky into the Union as 
an independent State, June i, 1792. Accord- constitutional 
ingly, April 3, 1792, the tenth and last conven- convention 
tion assembled at Danville, as usual, to form a constitution 
for the new Commonwealth. The convention was com- 
posed of five delegates from each of the nine counties then 
existing. The majority of them were very able men ; many 
of them had served repeatedly in former conventions. The 
constitution was modeled after the recently launched Fed- 
eral constitution. 

The government was organized under three heads, — 
legislative, executive, and judicial. The legislative power 
was vested in a General Assembly, consisting Features of the 
of a Senate and a House of Representatives, constitution 
The senators were chosen for four years by a college 
of electors. The representatives were chosen for one 
year, and were elected by the people. The executive 



90 



THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 



power was vested in a governor, who was likewise chosen 
for four years by the college of electors. The judicial 
power was vested in a supreme court and inferior courts, 
which the legislature might from time to time establish. 
The judges of the supreme court and of the inferior courts 
were nominated with the consent of the Senate, were ap- 
pointed by the governor, and held office during good 
behavior. Elections were made by ballot, and the right 
of suffrage was granted to every free male white inhabi- 
tant of the State, of the proper age, who had not been dis- 
franchised by conviction of crime. Ministers were not 
allowed to hold any legislative office. No point in the 
document is more worthy of note than the fact that com- 
merce in slaves was prohibited. While the provision was 
made that the legislature could not emancipate slaves 
without the consent of their owners, yet the power was 
given to that body to force the owners of slaves to provide 
properly for them, and to treat them with humanity. 

" Immediately after the adoption of the constitution, 
Colonel Isaac Shelby was elected governor. In him the 

State secured an admi- ^ 

Isaac Shelby, 

rable chief magistrate, the first 
The people could not ^°"''°°^ 
have chosen better. He was a 
Marylander, who became, in his 
early manhood, a citizen of what 
is now Tennessee (then a part of 
North Carolina). He did brilliant 
service in the battle of Point 
Pleasant, in October, 1774. After- 
wards, in North Carolina, he 
played a most gallant part in small 
expeditions, but especially in remedying the ruin that the 




Isaac Shelby 



THE END OF THE STRUGGLE 



91 



defeat of Gates at Camden brought upon the continental 
cause. When others were appalled by the magnitude of 
this disaster, Shelby seemed to awake to a full sense of 
his really great military power. He saved a little army 
he then commanded, and secured a large number of 
prisoners in his hands by a swift march to the west into 
the recesses of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Then, when 
he had disposed of his captives, he turned upon the famous 




Battle of King's Mountain 

Ferguson, and by the well-conceived and admirably exe- 
cuted move on King's Mountain, destroyed the force oi 
that able commander at a single blow. Although Shelby 
was not in name the chief in this action, there is no reason 
to doubt that the conception of the campaign and the 
vigor of its execution were his alone. His also was the 
scheme of attack which led to the battle of Cowpens. He 
went to Kentucky in 1783, where he married and re- 



92 



THE STRUGGLE FOR INDEPENDENCE 



mained, taking part in the early struggles for emancipa- 
tion from Virginia's control. As brave in action as he was 
wise in council, his choice as the first governor was an 
honor and a blessing to the young Commonwealth." ^ 



RECAPITULATION 



Statehood not yet attained. 

The fact known abroad. 

A British agent sent to Kentucky, 

The bribe ready for Kentucky. 

The intrigue disclosed to Colonel 

Thomas Marshall. 
The end of the intrigue. 
Eighth convention rejects the third 

act of Virginia. 
Ninth convention agrees to the fourth 

act. 
Date for separation fixed. 
Tenth convention called. 
The counties of the colonial era. 
Hopewell established. 
Bardstown established. 
Roman Catholic occupation. 
Baptists in Kentucky. 
"The Traveling Church." 
The Methodists, 
Other denominations. 
Troubles from Indians agam. 



Treaties with Indians of no avail. 
An expedition against the Miamisi 

planned. 
Force sent from Kentucky. 
Harmar's defeat. 

Indians more belligerent than ever. - 
Local Board of War appointed. 
St. Clair's appointment. 
Dissatisfaction of Kentuckians. 
Kentucky troops are drafted. 
Expedition against the Miami Indians. 
St. Clair's overwhelming defeat. 
Kentucky admitted into the Union. 
Tenth convention. 
State constitution framed. 
Resembles the Federal constitution. 
Legislative, executive, and judicial 

powers. 
Commerce in slaves prohibited. 
Isaac Shelby chosen governor. 
His military and civil services and fit 

ness for the position. 



* The above quotation is taken from Professor Shaler's scholarly study 
Kentucky in the American Commonwealth Series. 



FOUNDING OF THE COMMON- 
WEALTH, 1792-1850 



CHAPTER IX 

ORGANIZATION OF THE GOVERNMENT, 1 792-1 796 

The years of weary waiting were over at last, and the 
government of the new Commonwealth was about to be 
organized. On the morning of the 4th of Lexington the 
June, 1792, the town of Lexington — ap- ^''^ '^^^^^^ 
pointed to be the first capital of the State — was stirred 
with eager anticipation. The day before, Isaac Shelby had 
left his country place in Lincoln County and started on his 
journey to assume the duties of governor. At Danville the 
citizens poured forth to offer their congratulations in an ad- 
dress which had been prepared for the occasion. On the 
way, Shelby was met by a company of volunteer troops, 
which had been sent out from Lexington to conduct him 
into the capital. From various parts of the State, stran- 
gers had come to witness the ceremonies of the inaugura- 
tion. The people were all in the streets, arrayed in their 
best attire. There was a generous mingling of broadcloth 
costumes and buckskin, of imported silk and homespun 
gowns. 

93 



94 



FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 



As the procession neared the town, loud cheers arose, 
which were somewhat drowned by the firing of a cannon, 
The inaug- the cracking of rifles, and the beating of drums, 
uration ^^ ^^^ comcr of Main Street and Broadway 

the governor was received with mihtary honors by the Lex- 




Shelby's Inauguratiu 

ington Light Infantry. There he alighted from his horse 
to receive the address of welcome which was presented to 
him by the chairman of the town Board of Trustees, 
John Bradford, otherwise '* Old Wisdom," who has already 
been introduced to us as editor of the KentJicke Gazette. 
Courtly formality and homely simplicity met in the un- 



ORGANIZATION OF THE GOVERNMENT 95 

paved public square. The oath of office was adminis- 
tered to the governor. Then, with the same stateliness and 
miUtary parade that had characterized the entire proceed- 
ing, he was escorted to his chambers to rest at the Sheaf of 
Wheat inn, while the enthusiasm of the citizens continued 
and the bells of the town broke forth in joyous acclamation. 

Later in the day, the governor sent his reply to the 
•address of welcome and, at the same time, announced his 
appointments for secretary of state and attor- state 
ney-general. James Brown, selected for the appointments 
former office, afterwards served repeatedly in the United 
States Senate and ably filled the high position of minister 
to France. George Nicholas, appointed to the latter office, 
was one of the brilliant Virginians who had sought Ken- 
tucky at the close of the Revolution. He was a truly 
great lawyer. His career here was as successful as it was 
short. He settled near Danville in 1788, and died in 
Lexington in 1799. 

The legislature assembled and chose the speakers of 
the two houses, — Alexander Scott Bullitt, for the Senate, 
and Robert Breckinridge, for the House of Legislature 
Representatives. On the sixth day, the gover- assembles 
nor met the legislature in person, after the ancient custom 
of English kings which had been followed by the colonial 
governors. He appeared at the door of the Senate cham- 
ber of the first log statehouse, attended by his secretary 
of state. The speaker of the Senate advanced to meet 
him to conduct him to his seat. After a moment of 
solemn silence, he arose, read an address to the two 
Houses, and presented a manuscript copy to each of 
the speakers, and then retired in an impressive manner. 
The speaker of the House of Representatives and the 
members thereof likewise retired to transact business in 



96 



FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 



their own hall. The legislature elected two United States 
senators, — John Brown, who had already represented Ken- 
tucky in the old Congress, and John Edwards. The 
House of Representatives elected five commissioners to 
fix upon a permanent seat of government. 

The court of ap- 
peals consisted of three' 
judges. The persons 
appointed juages ap- 
by the gov- p°^^^'^ 
ernor for this dignified 
position were Caleb 
Wallace, another able 
Virginia lawyer who 
had risen to high stand- 
ing in Kentucky ; Ben- 
jamin Sebastian, the 
same who had entered 
into the Spanish con- 
s p i r a c y , but whose 
treason was not then 
suspected ; and Hary 
Innes, who was se- 
lected to be chief justice. Innes declined, however, in 
order to receive the office of United States district judge, 
and George Muter was appointed in his stead. 

On the 22d of December, 1792, the second session of 
the first Kentucky legislature adjourned, to hold no more 




Hary Innes 



Frankfort the 
permanent cap 
ital of the 
State 



in Lexington. The commissioners 



had selected Frankfort as the permanent cap- 
ital of the State. Nestled in the midst of 
hills, on the banks of the Kentucky River, Frankfort had 
certainly .the advantage of a picturesque situation. A 



ORGANIZATION OF THE GOVERNMENT 97 

private dwelling wavS employed as a temporary statehouse 
while a permanent stone building was being erected. 
This was occupied November 3, 1794. A governor's 
mansion was likewise built. 

The Indians were not yet subdued and still continued to 
harass the Kentuckians. Major John Adair, with about 
one hundred Kentucky militia, after a gallant Military 
fight at Fort St. Clair, in Ohio, was defeated by ^^^"^ 
a large body of Indians under Little Turtle. Colonel 
John Hardin and Major Truman were sent by General 
James Wilkinson on a mission to the Indians in northwest 
Ohio, and both were murdered. Boats were continually 
waylaid, and isolated frontier stations were attacked. 

After his disastrous defeat, General St. Clair retired from 
the command of the armies of the Northwest, and General 
Wayne, known as " Mad Anthony," 
was appointed to that position. Gen- 
eral Wayne called upon Kentucky 
for volunteers; but the Kentuckians 
had lost confidence in regular troops, 
because of the defeats of Harmar 
and St. Clair, and none offered. Gov- 
ernor Shelby ordered a draft, and in 
ithis way one thousand mounted mili- 
ftiamen were raised and placed under 
General Charles Scott's command. , . 

Antno/iy Wayne 

They joined General Wayne, October 

24, 1793, at his headquarters, about eighty miles north oi 
Cincinnati. Because of the approach of winter, however, 
the commander in chief decided not to prosecute the pro- 
posed campaign at that time. Fort Greenville was built, 
and the regular troops went into winter quarters, while the 
Kentucky militia were dismissed. One benefit had been 

KENT. HIST. — 7 




98 



FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 



Political affairs 



obtained : General Wayne's military ability had inspired 
the Kentuckians with confidence. 

Two issues ran side by side in the State and divided the 
thoughts of the people : the cessation of their Indian 
troubles, and the navigation of the Mississippi 
River. For years there had been many poli- 
ticians in Kentucky who believed that these benefits might 
have been obtained for them, if Congress had not been 
indifferent to their welfare. Great animosity was felt 
toward England, which still held the military posts in 
the Northwest, and toward Spain, which had closed to 
them the Mississippi. 

In 1793, news reached Kentucky that France had de- 
clared war against Eng- 
land, Spain, and Holland. 
The further fact was made 
known that the President 
had refused to enter into 
an alliance with France. 
Washington knew that 
war at this time would 
be disastrous to the 
United States. He stood 
firm on this point through 
that marvelous, calm 
foresight which con- 
trolled all his actions. 
But the majority of the 
people of the United 
States sympathized with 
France, who had so re- 
cently aided them in their conflict with Great Britain. 
Nowhere was this attachment more ardent than in Ken- 




George Washington 



ORGANIZATION OF THE GOVERNMENT 99 

tucky. Nevertheless, as is invariably the case, there was 
a division of sentiment. 

Those who adhered to the policy of the government of 
the United States were called Federalists ; those who were 
opposed to it were called either Anti-Federal- ^ , ,. , 

^J^ Federalists and 

ists, or Republicans, and later, Democrats. At Anti- 
Lexington there was organized a Democratic 
Club, — an outgrowth of the one already established at 
Philadelphia, which was modeled on the Jacobin clubs of 
France. Others sprang up at Georgetown and Paris. 
In Kentucky the horrors of the French Revolution were 
still unknown. It represented only an inspiring movement 
toward liberty. The tone of the Lexington society is indi- 
cated by the following resolution : '' That the right of the 
people on the waters of the Mississippi, to its navigation, 
is undoubted, and ought to be peremptorily demanded of 
Spain by the United States government." 

John Breckinridge was its first president. He was a 
young lawyer, who had recently come to Kentucky from 
Virginia. His clear mind and eloquent oratory john 
had brought him recognition in his native State. Breckinridge 
In Kentucky he took an active part in political affairs. He 
died in 1806, having held for one year the office of attorney- 
general in Jefferson's cabinet. 

Citizen Genet, minister of France, had recently landed 
at Charleston, South Carolina, for the purpose of enlisting 
aid for his country in the impending war. Im- French 
mediately he saw the situation in Kentucky, conspiracy 
and sent thither several agents to raise volunteers for an 
expedition against New Orleans and the Spanish posses- 
sions. So intense was the feeling in Kentucky on the 
navigation question, that the Frenchman succeeded in en- 
listing two thousand men for this conspiracy. George 



lOO FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 

Rogers Clark accepted the commission of "major general 
in the armies of France and commander in chief of the 
revolutionary legions on the Mississippi." 

The proposed conspiracy became known to the Federal 
government. Letters passed between Washington and 
Governor Shelby on the subject. It was a time of trial 

Shelby's to the govcrnor, but his conduct was marked 

posi ion ^.^j^ caution and wisdom. As governor of 

Kentucky he stood ready to perform whatever was con- 
stitutionally required of him; but he believed that this 
matter concerned the Federal government, and not that of 
the State. He did not believe he had the power to forbid 
the expedition if it could be accomplished. Moreover, he 
did not believe that it would be carried out. But the mat- 
ter offered him a fitting opportunity to make known to the 
President the intense feeling of the Anti-Federalists in 
Kentucky against the central government, which had not 
obtained for the State the navigation of the Mississippi. 
Happily the expedition was not accomplished. Washing- 
ton succeeded in having Genet recalled, and another minis- 
ter was appointed in his stead. 

The campaign against the Indians in the Northwest, 
projected by General Wayne in the autumn of 1793, was 
carried into effect the following summer. In July, Gen- 
eral Charles Scott, with sixteen hundred Kentucky vol- 
unteers, joined General Wayne at Fort Recovery. The 
Wayne's regular force under General Wayne was about 

victory equal in numbers to the Kentucky militia. On 

the 20th of August, 1794, a battle was fought at Fallen 
Timbers, on the Maumee, which resulted in a brilliant 
victory for the Americans. An equally beneficial event 
followed close upon Wayne's conquest. In November, 
Chief Justice John Jay succeeded in concluding a treaty 



ORGANIZATION OF THE GOVERNMENT lOI 

between the United States and Great Britain. Conse- 
quently the British posts in the Northwest were at last 
surrendered. 

It was some time before this last fact was known in 
Kentucky. Prior to that time, in the year 1795, the 
Spanish governor of Louisiana again at- g^^^^^ 
tempted to bribe Kentucky to secede from Spanish 
the Union, and to form an alliance with ^^^'p^'^^^ 
Spain, in order to obtain the navigation of the Mississippi. 
Thomas Power, a naturalized Spaniard, was sent to Ken- 
tucky to secure agents to accomplish this end. The man 
selected to receive Power's communication was Judge 
Benjamin Sebastian, one of the accomplices in the first 
Spanish conspiracy. 

Sebastian conferred with several prominent Kentuckians. 
He then proceeded to Natchez, and on to New Orleans, to 
negotiate with the authorities there. However, before 
any agreement had been reached between the Kentuckian 
and the Spanish governor, news came that a treaty be- 
tween the United States and Spain had been effected, and 
that Spain had granted to the United States the free navi- 
gation of the Mississippi River. Nevertheless, the Spanish 
governor was not willing to renounce, at once, all hope of 
ever gaining Kentucky. Sebastian was paid two thousand 
dollars for his efforts in this dishonorable work, and con- 
tinued to receive that amount annually for eleven years. 
Sebastian's treason was unknown to his fellow-Kentuck- 
ians, with probably two or three exceptions. He con- 
tinued to hold his office of judge of the court of appeals 
until 1806, at which time he was exposed and compelled 
to resign. 

We have learned that the opposition of the Kentuckians 
to the Federal government had its origin in their own 



I02 FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 

trials ; for a large majority of the people believed that the 
central government might have put an end to these if it 
had attempted to do so. But there were also 
clauses in the constitution of the United States 
to which they were directly opposed. Many objected to 
the policy of the Federalists (by whom the constitution 
was framed) because they believed it tended toward a 
monarchical rather than a republican form of government. 
We have noticed Kentucky's isolated situation and her 
long, single-handed struggle for existence. Naturally her 
people were watchful for their State's rights and liberties. 
But we have learned, also, that in the times of greatest 
temptation her people stood true to the Union. This fact 
indicates loyalty and sagacity and calls forth the highest 
admiration. 

Now the Indian troubles were at an end, and the Missis- 
sippi was open to Kentucky. Added to this, the feeling on 
the French question had chano^ed. Genet's 

Temporary ^ , ^, ^ ^ 

change of illegal actions in the United States had awak- 

ened disapproval. A fuller knowledge' of the 
French Revolution had produced a natural revulsion of 
feeling. Consequently, the Federal party in the State 
rose into temporary power. In 1795 Humphrey Marshall, 
the pronounced leader of the Federal side, was elected 
United States senator over John- Breckinridge, the popular 
representative of the Republicans. During this same year, 
however, the governor appointed Breckinridge attorney- 
general of the State. 

In the year 1793, the first steamboat which ever success- 
fully moved on any waters was exhibited at Lexington. 
Invention of The town branch of the Elkhorn — now dis- 
the steamboat appeared from sight, but then a considerable 
stream — was dammed up for the trial of the miniature 



ORGANIZATION OF THE GOVERNMENT 



103 



model which had been constructed, and crowds of enthusi- 
astic spectators rejoiced over the success of this important 
invention. The inventor was Edward West, who emigrated 
from Virginia to Lexington in 1785, where he died in 1827, 
after a long life 
spent in experi- 
menting in inven- 
tions. The honor 
of having invented 
the steamboat be- 
longs, however, to 
John Fitch, — be- 
fore referred to in 
these pages, — who, as early as 1785, completed his model. 
But unfortunately Fitch's invention failed of success, eithei 
because he lacked the necessary funds or the adequate 
force of character to bring it to the knowledge of the 
people. 




Fitch's Steamboat 



RECAPITULATION 



Lexington the first capital. 

Governor Shelby inaugurated. 

Military honors and picturesque pa- 
rade. 

Two appointments announced. 

Legislature assembles; speakers 
chosen. 

The governor opens the legislature. 

Stately proceedings. 

United States senators elected. 

Judges appointed. 

Frankfort selected as the permanent 
capital. 

Public buildings erected there. 

Indian trouliles again. 

General Wayne's appointment. 



One thousand Kentuckians drafted. 
Campaign postponed. 
The French war. 

England, Spain, and Holland in- 
volved. 
Washington refuses to take part. 
United States divided on the subject. 
Kentucky is indignant. 
She dislikes England and Spain. 
Desires to aid France. 
Federalists and Anti-Federalists. 
Democratic clubs. 
The Lexington club. 
John Breckinridge its president. 
The French conspiracy. 
General Clark's commission. 



I04 



FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 



Governor Shelby's cautious action. 
Failure of the conspiracy. 
Wayne's victory. 
British posts resigned. 
Second Spanish conspiracy. 
Sebastian's treason. 
Treaty with Spain concluded. 
Kentucky generally Anti-Federal. 
Opposed to a strong central govern- 
ment. 



Momentary change of sentiment after 
the Indian troubles are ended and 
the navigation granted. 

Federal party rises into power. 

Humphrey Marshall elected United 
States senator. 

Edward West at Lexington. 

Models a steamboat in 1793. 

Successful trial on Elkhorn Creeko 

Fitch's invention unsuccessful. 



CHAPTER X 

POLITICAL SITUATION IN KENTUCKY, 1 796-181 1 

In May, 1796, James Garrard was elected second gov- 
ernor of Kentucky. The first year of his administration 
Garrard's was marked by few events of importance, 

administration j^^ following Spring, the advisability of re- 
vising the State constitution was discussed, and a vote was 
taken to obtain the will of the people. But no decision 
was reached in the matter, as a number of the counties 
failed to make returns. A second vote was taken on the 
same subject in 1798, and met with a similar result. In 
the autumn of that year, the question was brought before 
the legislature, and as a majority of the members voted in 
favor of revision, a convention was called for July 22, 1799. 

During the summer of 1797, Thomas Power was again 
sent to Kentucky to concert with Benjamin Sebastian re- 
garding the separation of the State from the Union. But 
this third Spanish conspiracy failed in its very beginning. 

The November session of the legislature revised the 
criminal code, and punishment by death was allowed only 
for murder in the first degree. 

The interval of quiet which Kentucky had been en- 
joying was destined to be interrupted by a profound agita- 
Aiienand tion. In the spring session of 1798, the 

seditioniaws ^o^gress of the United States passed two 
acts known in the political history of the nation as the 
Alien and Sedition laws. The particularly objectionable 

105 



:o6 



FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 



features in these acts were the following : The first act 
gave to the President authority over all foreigners. He 
might grant them license to remain in the United States ; 
he might order them to depart from its territory if he sus- 
pected them of treasonable designs ; he might imprison, 
according to his judgment, all foreigners who returned to 
the United States without having obtained his permission. 

The second act was an 
attempt to control the 
people in the free ex- 
pression of opinion. 
By this law it became 
an offense, subject to 
fine or imprisonment, 
for any one to utter, 
print, or publish any 
libel against the gov- 
ernment of the United 
States, the President, 
or either House of 
Congress. 

The Kentuckians 
were aroused, almost 
to a man. There was 
no wavering in their 
judgment of these obnoxious laws. They deemed them 
directly unconstitutional. In their opinion Kentucky's 
they indicated an assumption, on the part action 
of the Federal government, of an authority which did 
not belong to it. The first to issue a protest against them 
were the citizens of Clark County. They embodied their 
opposition in a vigorous set of resolutions, which were 
transmitted to their representative in Congress to be pre- 




Henry Clay 



rOLiriCAL SITUATION IN KENTUCKV TO/ 

sented by him to each branch of that body and to the 
President. In the crowd which gathered at Lexington 
to discuss the subject was young Henry Clay, — twenty- 
one years old, —who had come from Virginia the year 
before to make his home in Kentucky. He had already 
made himself known in the State by advocating the grad- 
ual emancipation of slavery. The people called upon him , 
to speak to them. The subject was one to stir the un- 
fledged genius of the orator. He was lifted into a cart, 
from which "proud eminence" he poured forth such de- 
nunciations of the act o'f Congress as won the admiration 
and satisfaction of his high-wrought audience. 

But the most bold, far-reaching, effective summary of 
political doctrine called forth by these laws was that con- 
tained in the resolutions known as the Ken- j^^^^^^^y. 
tucky Resolutions of 1798.^ The resolutions Resolutions of 
were drafted by Thomas Jefferson, and revised 
and offered to the legislature, on November 8, by John 
Breckinridge, the representative of Fayette County in the 
State legislature and a leader in the Republican party. 
These resolutions had perhaps a deeper import than the 
mere expression of righteous indignation against the pas- 
sage by Congress of two odious acts that were destined 
to exist only for a brief term. In them we find the germ 
of the doctrine of nullification which became an important 
factor in the causes which led to the Civil War. 

This doctrine is briefly as follows: That the several 
States composing the United States of America are not 
united in submission to their general govern- Doctrine of 
ment ; that the general government was ^^^^^ "^^^^ 
created by a compact of the several States, each State 
agreeing thereto, and yet reserving to itself the right to 

'^Kentucky Resolutions of ijgS. By Ethelbert Dudley Warfield. 



Io8 FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 

its own self-government ; that the government created by 
this compact is not made the final judge of the powers 
delegated to it ; that as each State is a party to the 
compact, therefore each State ** has an equal right to 
judge for itself as well of infractions as of the mode and 
measure of redress." 

The resolutions thus presented to the legislature in an 

ardent speech by their mover, passed the Lower House 

with one dissenting voice. William Murray, a 

Resolutions . 

accepted by the clcver lawyer, made an earnest protest agamst 
egis a ure them. In the Senate, John Pope made an un- 
successful effort to amend them, and they were unanimously 
accepted. At the time of their adoption the possible 
tendency of the resolutions was not considered. They were 
framed to meet a need of the hour. The Federal govern- 
ment had assumed an authority, the Kentuckians believed, 
which was unconstitutional. Therefore, the Federal govern- 
ment must be censured, else it might encroach and assume 
greater power, and then become monarchical, instead of 
Democratic. Kentucky was passionately Democratic or 
Republican. The resolutions were signed by the governor, 
and then submitted to the other States to be considered. 
Only Virginia, however, concurred with the action of Ken- 
tucky. 

The convention to revise the State constitution assembled 
July 22, 1799, at Frankfort, and chose Alexander Scott 
Second Bullitt president, and Thomas Todd — who so 

constitutional many times before had served in this capacity 

convention •' ^ '■ •' 

— clerk. The outburst of feeling awakened 
by the mere suspicion of a monarchical inclination in the 
central government largely influenced the changes which 
were made in the constitution. The governor was no 
longer to be elected by a college of electors, but directly 



POLITICAL SITUATION IN KENTUCKY 



109 



by the votes of the people. Furthermore, his authority 
was Umited. His veto might be overruled by a majority 
of the legislature. The office of lieutenant governor was 
created. This officer, similarly elected by the people, 
should be the speaker of the Senate. The senators, like- 
wise, were to be elected by the direct votes of the people. 
The new constitution went into effect June i, 1800. 
James Garrard had again 



Local politics 



been chosen 
governor, and 




Alexander Scott Bullitt 
was elected lieutenant gov- 
ernor. John Breckinridge 
was chosen speaker of the 
House. There was the 
utmost quiet in local elec- 
tions. Kentucky's whole 
political interest was now 
absorbed in the affairs of 
the nation, — the forthcom- 
ing contest between the 
Federalist and Democratic 
parties. When Thomas 
Jefferson, the Democratic 
nominee, was declared 
President, the satisfaction in the State was almost univer- 
sal. It expressed itself in exuberant speeches of delight. 
Of course, the hated Alien and Sedition laws were then 
repealed. 

But the most important event to Kentucky in Jeffer- 
son's administration was the purchase of Louisiana from 
the French, to whom it had been ceded by Spain. Gen- 
eral James Wilkinson, whose character has only been 



Thomas Jefferscn 



no 



FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 



understood in recent years, was then holding the rank of 
major general in the United States Army. It is an enter- 
taining and curious fact that on the 20th of December, 
1803, the French governor general delivered up the terri- 
tory to that officer. Thus at last the projector of the 
Spanish Conspiracy took possession of New Orleans ; but 
in a manner totally different from what he had imagined, — 
under the honorable authority of his national government. 
But Wilkinson is often accused of complicity in another 
equally romantic and treasonable conspiracy, and in this, 

too, the bold, adventure- Aaron Burr's 

loving Kentuckians were ^^^^^^^^^^ 
tempted to disloyalty. Aaron Burr, 
late Vice President of the United 
States, — now bearing upon his soul 
the crime of having taken the hfe 
of Alexander Hamilton, — being cut 
off from all high official attainment, 
restlessly sought a means to gratify 
his proud ambition. Burr's dazzling 
scheme was to conquer the Spanish 
province of Mexico, then friendly 
to the United States, to unite to it the southwestern States, 
to make New Orleans the capital of this vast territory, and 
himself the emperor or ruler. Wilkinson, according to his 
accusers, was to be second only to Burr. 

Blennerhasset, a wealthy Irish scholar, living on a 
beautiful island in the Ohio River, had become fascinated 
by Burr's allurements to the extent of employing his vast 
fortune for the cause, and he was to be a powerful 
duke or chief minister of the empire. The cooperating 
Kentuckians were likewise to reap the reward of their 
assistance. To arrange his project, Burr made frequent 




Aaron Burr 



POLITICAL SITUATION IN KENTUCKY 



III 



trips to Lexington and Louisville, and through the south- 
ern cities. 

Joseph Hamilton Daveiss, United States attorney 
for Kentucky, first became suspicious of Burr's move- 
ments, then convinced of his treacherous de- ^^^^.^^.^^^^ 
signs. On November 3, 1806, he appeared in 
the court at Frankfort and brought an indictment against 
Burr for high treason. Burf met the charge with cool 
denial. Several days 
later, with a sem- 
blance of sincerity, 
he urged the court 
to continue the pros- 
ecution. A day was 
set for the trial. 
After giving a writ- 
ten pledge of his in- 
nocence, Burr secured 
Henry Clay and John 
Allen for his counsel. 
Intense popular inter- 
est was aroused. 

The prosecution 
seemed to take on 
the form of a perse- 
cution, because of the ardent political feeling of the time. 
Burr had won many friends in Kentucky. Daveiss was 
a stanch adherent of the despised Federalist party. 
Henry Clay had thrown the weight of his influence into 
Burr's faction. The trial did not come off because of 
the failure, on the part of the United States attorney, 
to obtain the attendance of the necessary witnesses. 
Nevertheless, the expectant audience was granted the 




(ir\'0^s^ N 



Joseph Hamilton Daveiss 



112 



FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 



excitement of listening to a flashing debate on the sub- 
ject between Clay and Daveiss. Never have two greater, 
more brilliant men met in opposition at the famous bar 
of Kentucky. 

Shortly afterward, a ball was given in Frankfort in 
Burr's honor. This was followed by a similar festivity 
Fate of the given by the friends of the United States 
conspirators attorney. For a while Daveiss suffered a 
great loss of popularity on account of his efforts toward 
the prosecution ; but he was soon to be vindicated. 

Burr's times of suc- 
cess were at an end. 
He was tried in 
Richmond, Virginia, 
in March, 1807. 
Though certain legal 
technicalities pre- 
vented his convic- 
tion, no one doubted 

An Early Methodist Church J^jg g^jj^^ J^^g \^^^ 

days were spent in wretched poverty and sorrow. Blen- 
nerhasset also died forlornly. Only Wilkinson lived on 
■in the favor of fortune. 

Running along by the side of these social agitations was 
a deep spiritual movement which spread throughout the 
The great State. This revival began in the Methodist 

revival church, but it awoke religious enthusiasm in 

all the existing denominations. Thousands flocked to the 
camp meetings which were constantly held, and humble 
laborers and learned statesmen were equally stirred by 
a consideration of the greatest problem of life. In the 
trend of this Christian movement came the formation 
of an association called the Friends of Humanity. Six 




POUTICAI. SITUATION IN KENTUCKY II3 

Baptist ministers of note, and others of less conspicuous 
ability, united themselves together for the purpose of 
advocating the abolition of slavery. Their numbers in- 
creased at first, but they were discountenanced by their 
brother associations, and soon vanished. 

In 1804, Christopher Greenup was elected governor. 
He was one of the strong characters of the early days. 
For more than ten years, he had been actively ^ears of quiet 
connected with the public affairs of Kentucky. 
It was during his administration (1806) that the trial of 
Judge Benjamin Sebastian occurred. Burr's conduct led 
to the investigation concerning Sebastian. During the 
same year, George Muter resigned from the office of chief 
justice, and Thomas Todd was appointed to fill the va- 
cancy. But Judge Todd did not long execute the duties 
of chief justice, as higher honors awaited him. In Feb- 
ruary, 1807, he was appointed judge of the United States 
supreme court in the newly created circuit of Kentucky, 
Ohio, and Tennessee. Several eminent jurists now occu- 
pied the chief justice's bench in quick succession. Felix 
Grundy, Judge Todd's successor, resigned after a few 
months to make his home in Tennessee. Ninian Ed- 
wards, the next appointee, resigned after a little more 
than a year's service, to become governor of the Illinois 
Territory. He was followed by George M. Bibb, who also 
' resigned in less than a year. 

In 1807, the Bank of Kentucky was chartered with 
^1,000,000 capital. Robert Alexander was appointed 
president by the governor. Prior to this time, Kentucky 
had been rigorously opposed to banking; but through 
some curious misunderstanding on the part of the legisla- 
ture, in 1802, the Kentucky Insurance Company had been 
chartered with banking powers. 

KENT. HIST. — 8 



114 



FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 




The Prophet 



In 1808, General Charles Scott was elected to succeed 

Governor Greenup. His opponent was the rising young 
lawyer, John Allen, who Beginning of 
made a vigorous canvass. ^^^ 
But the Kentuckians were pleased 
to honor the military services 
of the veteran officer, especially 
as the years of peace were at 
an end. For some time the 
Indians living on the Wabash 
River had been growing restless 
under the advance of white 
civilization. They were roused 
to rebellion by their two great 
chiefs, Tecumseh and his brother 

the Prophet, and also by the influence of the Enghsh, who 

now anticipated another 

war with the United 

States. In the summer 

of 181 1, General Harri- 
son, governor of the 

Indiana Territory, called 

for volunteers from Ken- 
tucky. Many brave men, 

ambitious for military 

glory, answered the 

summons. The battle 

of Tippecanoe was 

fought November 7, 

181 1. Harrison was 

surprised in the night 

by the Indians ; never- 

CheleSS, he bravely and Tecumseh mcUmg the Creeks 




A'-tf> a} . 



POLITICAL SITUATION IN KENTUCKY 



115 



successfully met the attack. But Kentucky suffered a 
deeply felt loss by this battle, in the early death of two of 
her valued citizens, Colonel Joseph Hamilton Daveiss and 
Colonel Abraham Owen. A county of the State was 
named in memory of each. 



RECAPITULATION 



James Garrard, second governor. 

Legislature orders a constitutional 
convention. 

The third Spanish conspiracy. 

Alien and Sedition laws. 

The first gave the President control 
of aliens. 

The second restricted the expression 
of opinion. 

Kentucky condemns the laws. 

Clark County makes the first protest. 

Henry Clay denounces them. 

Kentucky Resolutions of 1798. 

Doctrine of State Rights involved. 

The general government a compact 
of States, each State retaining the 
right to govern itself. 

Each State has the right to judge acts 
of the general government, and to 
nullify them if they are objection- 
able. 

John Breckinridge, the mover of the 
Resolutions. 

Opposition of Murray and Pope. 

Resolutions carried in the legisla- 
ture. 

Second constitutional convention. 

Recent agitation causes certain 
changes in the constitution. 

James Garrard, third governor. 



A. S. Bullitt, lieutenant governor. 
John Breckinridge, speaker. 
Local politics quiet. 
National politics absorb attention. 
Kentucky rejoices over Jefferson's 

election as President. 
Alien and Sedition laws repealed. 
Louisiana purchased. 
Delivered up to General Wilkinson 
Aaron Burr's conspiracy. 
Wilkinson implicated. 
Blennerhasset's part in the scheme. 
Bribe offered to Kentuckians. 
Burr is indicted by J. H. Daveiss. 
H. Clay and John Allen, Burr's couni 

sel. 
Burr's cool audacity. 
Speeches of Clay and Daveiss. 
The two balls given at Frankfort. 
The fate of the conspirators. 
The great revival. 
"The Friends of Humanity." 
Christopher Greenup, governor. 
Benjamin Sebastian is tried and con 

victed. 
Judge Thomas Todd. 
The first banks in the State. 
General Charles Scott, governor. 
The beginnings of war. 
The battle of Tippecanoe. 



CHAPTER XI 

THE WAR OF 1812, 1812-1815 

War with all of its horrors and feverish anticipations 
was again at hand. The causes which led to the second 
Causes which conflict with Great Britain had long been ac- 
ledtothewar cumulating. England and France were in 
arms against each other, and the United States main- 
tained a neutral position. In order to injure France, Eng- 
land blockaded with men of war the whole coast of France, 
and France retaliated by declaring a similar blockade of 
the coast of England. American vessels were seized as 
prizes, and the commerce of the United States was inter- 
rupted in a most disastrous manner. 

But this was not all. A greater injury, in that it con- 
tained an insult to our nation, was endured from England 
before war was declared. By the policy of the United 
States, any foreigner, after having thrown off allegiance 
to his own government, might become an American 
citizen, if he so desired. On the contrary, England 
claimed that a man born an English subject was always 
an English subject. American vessels were boarded by 
English officers, and searched by them to find sailors 
whom they claimed to be deserting Englishmen. In 
this way thousands of our seamen were captured. The 
United States deeply resented this outrage. Then the 
crisis came. On the i8th day of June, .1812, war was 
declared. 

116 



THE WAR OF i8i2 



117 



In addition to the regular army ordered to be raised, 
one hundred thousand militia were to be furnished by the 
different States of the Union. Many of the 

-' Kentucky's 

States were opposed to the war, and conse- warenthusi- 
quently refused to comply with the President's ^^"^ 
demand. But not so Kentucky; her people had ever 
looked upon England as the cruel enemy of their pros- 
perity ; and they eagerly rushed forward to aid in right- 
ing the wrong against 
their nation. Only 
five thousand five 
hundred men were 
required of Kentucky, 
but she was granted 
the privilege of fur- 
nishing seven thou- 
sand. And the State 
did not hold back her 
best, but offered her 
worthiest sons for the 

cause. A righteous 

resentment of of- 
fenses, and an unsurpassed courage 
and high sense of honor, were 
.indicated by this eager desire 
to participate in the opening con- 
flict 

On the 15th of August, two thousand troops, destined to 
join the army in the Northwest, assembled at Georgetown. 
They consisted of a regiment of regulars, un- Troops leave 
der Colonel Samuel Wells, and three militia ^^^ state 
regiments under Colonels John Allen, J. M. Scott, and 
William Lewis. Of the companies under Lewis, Lexing- 




Impressment of Seamen 



If8 FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 

ton had furnished six, and one was the Lexington Light 
Artillery, even then historic, commanded by the gallant 
young captain, Nathaniel G. T. Hart. They were formed 
into a brigade, and placed under the command of Brigadier 
General John Payne. Several days later, the troops were 
reviewed in the presence of thousands of interested spec- 
tators. Henry Clay made a speech, and Dr. Blythe, presi- 
dent of Transylvania University, preached a sermon ; and 
thus animated and encouraged, they were prepared to begin 
their hard, eventful campaign. 

On their march to Detroit the troops learned that Gen- 
eral Hull, governor of Michigan Territory, had surrendered 
Harrison's ^^^ the most cowardly manner to the British, 
appointment Great indignation was aroused. Letters were 
written to Kentucky to request the appointment of General 
Harrison as commander of the Kentucky militia. Gov- 
ernor Scott's term of oi^ce was drawing to a close, but 
some action was imperative. He sought a council of ex- 
Governor Shelby, ex-Governor Greenup, Henry Clay, 
Judge Thomas Todd, and several other distinguished cit- 
izens. They unanimously agreed in recommending the 
appointment. It was therefore made. In a few more days 
three other companies were raised by Colonels Richard 
M. Johnson, James Johnson, and Captain John Arnold. 
General Harrison was also appointed by the President as 
commander of the army of the Northwest, to supersede 
General Winchester. On the 29th of September, he left 
Lexington to join the forces thus placed under his control. 

The Kentucky troops reached the Rapids of the Maumee 
the loth of January, and halted to await the arrival of 
First battle at General Harrison. But they were not long to 
Frenchtown remain inactive. A few days later a call for 
assistance reached them from Frenchtown, on the river 



THE WAR OF 1812 



119 




William Henry Harrison 



Raisin, about thirty-eight miles away. A detachment 
commanded by Colonel Lewis, under whom were Colonel 
John Allen and Majors Martin 
D. Hardin, George Madison, and 
Benjamin Graves, eagerly has- 
tened to respond to the summons. 
On the 1 8th a successful battle 
was fought, and the British were 
driven from the village. But this 
victory was to be followed by an 
awful tragedy. 

Two days later. General Win- 
chester arrived with a reenforce- 
ment consisting of Colonel Wells's 
regiment of regulars. Although 
General Winchester was soon informed that a large force 
of the enemy was on its way toward the town, he made 
no preparation for an attack. The night was second battle 
bitterly cold, and the caution of placing pickets ^^ Frenchtown 
on the road by which the enemy would approach the town 
was neglected. Accordingly, before daylight on the morn- 
ing of January 22, the camp was surprised by an army of 
two thousand British and Indians under General Proctor. 
The firing was opened upon the stockade of the Kentuck- 
ians and was returned with considerable loss to the British. 
But Colonel Wells's company was encamped on the open 
field. It was impossible for it to resist the attack, and the 
men retreated panic-stricken. 

At this crisis. Colonels Lewis and Allen, with a detach- 
ment of one hundred men, rushed forward like typical 
Kentuckians to rally the retreating soldiers. Nearly all 
of Wells's men were killed or wounded, as were very many 
of those under Lewis and Allen. Lewis was wounded, 



I20 FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 

and Colonel Allen was slain. Thus fell in early manhood 
one of the most promising citizens of Kentucky, a man of 
pure life, of heroic character, and strong legal ability. 
Then came a summons to surrender. To the heroes of 
Kentucky death was far preferable to defeat. But after 
a consultation, in view of their situation, the remaining 
officers wisely determined to comply with the demand of 
the enemy. Having obtained a solemn promise from the 
British that the wounded Americans would be safely 
guarded, they agreed to lay down their arms. 

But the pledge was not fulfilled. The Indians were not 

restrained by the British, and early the next morning they 

entered the cellar of a tavern where some of 

The massacre 

the wounded soldiers were quartered, broke 
open casks of liquor, and drank until they were maddened 
far beyond their usual state of cruelty. Soldiers were 
dragged out of their beds and tomahawked. A house 
containing other wounded men was burned to the ground. 
Several of the officers attempted to escape under the escort 
of Indians whom they paid to guide them, and were 
treacherously murdered on the way by their escorts. 

Never did a more barbarous butchery of human beings 
occur. The details are too ghastly to be repeated. In 
Kentucky, anguish prevailed such as had not been felt 
since the fatal battle of the- Blue Licks. There were 
many widows and mourning friends and relatives left to 
recount the horrors of the Raisin massacre. And Ken- 
tucky has preserved the memory of some of her brave 
soldiers who lost their life at that place by naming various 
counties of the State after them, — Allen and Edmonson, 
Graves, Hart, and Hickman. 

In August, 1812, Isaac Shelby had been elected governor 
for the second time. He had consented to become the 



THE WAR OF 1812 



12 



chief executive again, only because the United States was 
involved in war. He now exerted all his influence to 
arouse the patriotic ardor of his fellow citizens ^ .. , 

^ Reenforce- 

to reenforce the army of the Northwest and ments from 

11 -r^ • • .-T-i 1 r Kentucky 

retrieve the loss at Raism. Thousands of 
Kentuckians hastened to volunteer for the service. A 
strong brigade of three thousand men was formed under 
Brigadier General Green Clay, 
consisting of four regiments 



commanded by Colonels Dud- 
ley, Boswell, Cox, and Cald- 
well. This force reached the 
banks of the Maumee, oppo- 
site Fort Meigs, on the night 
of the 4th of May. In the 
distance could be heard the 
cannon of the enemy. Since 
the first day of the month. Gen- 
eral Proctor with about two 
thousand British and Indians 
had surrounded the camp of 
the Americans. The fact of 
the approach of the Kentuck- 
ians was borne to General Harrison, and orders were re- 
turned to the brigadier general. 

The next day General Clay, with the larger portion of 
his men, fearlessly and successfully pushed his way 
through the ranks of the British to the southern shore 
of the river. With this reenforccment, the fort was en- 
abled to repel Proctor's attack so vigorously that the siege 
was raised on the ninth day. 

But the fate of the other portion of the Kentucky troops 
was far different. While the main body was proceeding 




Green Clay 



122 FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 

to Fort Meigs, a detachment of seven or eight hundred 
men, commanded by Colonel William Dudley, had been dis- 
Dudiey's patched to the northern shore of the river to 

defeat storm the British batteries. In this they were 

successful. But other orders, which commanded them to 
return immediately to their boars, were misunderstood. 
The Kentuckians delayed, to return a straggling fire from 
the Indians. They were surprised by Proctor, greatly 
outnumbered, and completely defeated. Many were slain 
and many wounded. Again the Indians treated their 
prisoners with the barbarous cruelty that had been prac- 
ticed upon the victims of the Raisin massacre ; and the 
British did not forbid the outrage. Only one hundred and 
fifty men escaped, and these also might have been mur- 
dered if the noble Indian chief, Tecumseh, had not rushed 
A^ith his sword drawn, into the midst of the carnage, and 
controlled his savage brethren. 

Again Kentucky was called upon for reenforcements, 
and again she offered double the number demanded. Gov- 
ernor Shelby announced that he would take the field in 
person, and called upon volunteers to meet him 

Kentucky r ' r 

sends more at Newport. In less than thirty days, four 
thousand Kentuckians had assembled. Out- 
side of Kentucky the governor had no authority to com- 
mand ; but his authority rested with his men, whose con- 
fidence in their leader expressed itself in the watchword 
of the time, — "Old King's Mountain will lead us to vic- 
tory!" 

It is a fact of curious interest that Governor Shelby 
and his large reenforcement of Kentuckians reached the 
Result of the camp of General Harrison just at the moment 
council of war ^j^g^ Conimodore Perry was landing with his 
prisoners after his important victory over Commodore Bar* 



THE WAR OF 1812 



12^ 



clay on Lake Erie. Later on a council of war was held, 
to decide whether the American forces should cross the 
lake into Canada and pursue the British army, which was 
known to be retreating. 




Battle of Lake Erie 



The practicability of pursuing and overtaking Proctor 
was carefully argued and weighed as a military proposi- 
tion. But in the mind of Governor Shelby there was 
no hesitation. He had gone all that distance with his 
** Kentucky boys" to meet the enemies of his country, 
and his determination was fixed to seek an encounter. 
Therefore an affirmative decision was cast. The order 
was given by General Harrison to parade the army for 
embarkation on Perry's fleet. 



124 FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 

Kentuckians have always shown a tendency to be 

strongly influenced by eloquent oratory. On Governor 

Shelby's staff were two youno; officers, who 

Power of ora- ■> . 

tory over later became famous throughout the nation, — 

Majors John J. Crittenden and William T. 
Barry. Upon the suggestion of the governor, each ad- 
dressed the troops of his State. Whatever reluctance to 
cross on to foreign soil may have existed among them, 
vanished under the fire of eloquence poured forth by the 
young speakers. They recounted in picturesque and dra- 
matic words the wrongs their nation had endured from the 
British, and the awful slaughter of their countrymen at 
the hands of the enemy, until every heart was stirred with 
patriotic impulses. ''Remember Raisin,'' rang in their 
ears, and all were eager for action. 

The march the first day was made in close order in solid 
columns. To the alert and practiced eye of Shelby this 
The march into manner of movement seemed to be too slow 
Canada £qj. |-j^g hazardous undertaking before them — 

that of reaching Proctor and bringing him to battle. He 
communicated his fears to General Harrison, who, per- 
ceiving at once the truth of the suggestion, commanded 
that the order of march be changed in accordance with 
Governor Shelby's advice. The columns, therefore, were 
broken, and the army moved forward as a great com- 
pany of travelers, each individual being urged to the 
utmost speed. Colonel R. M. Johnson's regiment of 
Kentucky cavalry was pushed eighteen or twenty miles 
in advance, to prevent a surprise. Soon all recognized 
the advantage of the new order of march. On the third 
day, straggling soldiers from the British army were cap- 
tured at the crossing of different streams, and were passed 
to the rear of the American army as prisoners. This 



THE WAR OF 1812 



125 



fact gave hope and increased vigor to the movements of 
our men. 

On the fourth day the American army came upon Gen- 
eral Proctor encamped at. the Moravian town, on the 
river Thames, eighty-six miles northeast of The battle of 
Detroit. Here a decisive battle was fought, the Thames 
October 5, 181 3. The American force was larger than 
the British and more cleverly ordered. Tecumseh fell 
early in the action, and the Indians grew disheartened 
at the loss of their great chief. The result was complete 
victory for the Americans and an end to the war in the 
Northwest. 

Almost the entire force was from Kentucky, and many 
distinguished men were included in its number, — General 
John Adair, who fought brave- 
ly at the battle of New Or- 
leans, and afterward became 
governor of his State ; Barry 
and Crittenden, already men- 
tioned ; General Joseph Desha, 
prominent in the political 
affairs of his day, and also des- 
tined to be governor of Ken- 
tucky ; the gallant Colonel 
Richard M. Johnson, the 
slayer of Tecumseh ; and Col- 
onel Charles S. Todd, who in 
the times of peace served his 
country in the halls of Con- 
gress and as an ambassador to Russia, 

A treaty of peace was signed at Ghent, December, 
1814; but before the news reached this country several 
more battles were fought. Of these, the only one which 




Richard M. Johnson 



126 



FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 



concerns the history of Kentucky was the brilUant bat- 
tle of New Orleans, January 8, 1815. The British forces 
Battle of were commanded by Sir Edward Paken- 

New Orleans ham; the American, by General Andrew 
Jackson of Tennessee. Here again Kentuckians rendered 
important assistance, and again had the joy of partici- 
pating in a triumph. It has been said of them that they 
" formed the strength of that central force which repulsed 
Pakenham." 

RECAPITULATION 



England and France at war. 

United States neutral. 

American commerce interrupted. 

Sailors captured by England. 

United States resents the insult. 

Declares war, June, 1812. 

Kentucky enthusiastic for the war. 

One hundred thousand militia ordered 
to be raised. 

Kentucky furnishes seven thousand. 

Gives her worthiest sons. 

Two thousand troops leave George- 
town. 

Their request of Governor Scott. 

A council of distinguished men. 

General Harrison's appointments. 

He becomes commander of the Ken- 
tucky militia, and of the army of 
the Northwest. 

He leaves Lexington for his post. 

The Kentucky brigade reaches the 
Northwest. 

Is not long inactive. 

Battle at Frenchtown. 

British driven from the village. 

General Winchester arrives. 

Makes no preparation for an attack. 

Is surprised by Proctor. 

Fate of Colonel Wells's regiment. 



Heroism of Lewis, Allen, and others. 
Kentuckians obliged to surrender. 
British promise safety to prisoners. 
Promise not fulfilled. 
Indians become intoxicated. 
Terrible slaughter of prisoners takes 

place. 
Counties named for slain officers. 
Isaac Shelby again governor. 
Brigadier General Green Clay. 
He reaches Fort Meigs. 
Clay divides his force. 
Reenforces General Harrison. 
Dudley's defeat. 
Again prisoners are butchered. 
Tecumseh's timely appearance. 
Governor Shelby's call for volunteers. 
Four thousand meet him at Newport. 
The governor takes command. 
Dramatic meeting at Harrison's camp. 
Decision to pursue Proctor. 
Speeches of Crittenden and Barry. 
The battle of the Thames. 
Death of Tecumseh. 
End of the war in the Northwest. 
Distinguished Kentuckians in the 

battle. 
Brilliant battle of New Orleans. 
Kentucky's part in the victory. 



CHAPTER XII 

LOCAL AFFAIRS, 1816-1835 

War was now at an end, but peace did not await the 
people of Kentucky. They were about to enter a political 
conflict as severe as any they had ever fought The return to 
with arms. The first contest in the legislature state affairs 
arose in 18 16, when George Madison, the newly elected 
governor, suddenly died, and the question whether the 
legislature had the power to order a new election came up 
for decision. After a fight, the vote was cast in the nega- 
tive, and Gabriel Slaughter, the lieutenant governor, be- 
came governor. He fulfilled the duties of that position 
until 1820, although the matter was not suffered to rest 
with this first decision, and was repeatedly agitated during 
various sessions of the legislature. But the disturbance 
thus caused was as an ordinary strong wind to a cyclone 
in comparison with the storm which was caused by the 
financial condition of the country. 

While war prevailed in Europe, America had been cut 
off from foreign trade. The capital of the country was 
therefore employed in establishing factories Financial 
for home manufactures. But when the war in depression 
Europe was over, foreign goods were again sent over to 
the United States. The newly established trades of this 
country could not at once compete with the cheaper and 
better commodities of the older country ; hence resulted a 

127 



128 FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 

temporary financial depression. Furthermore, during the 
European wars, and the war of America with England, 
gold and silver had been banished from circulation, and 
in their place had been substituted a paper currency, 
which gave a high nominal value to commodities. The 
return to specie payment lowered this value, and the 
result was very general bankruptcy. Beside these causes 
of disaster, the country was burdened with an enormous 
war debt. 

For a time Kentucky was in a prosperous condition. 
Her portion of the war debt was promptly paid. Manu- 
^ ^ , , factories sprang up all over the State. In 

Kentucky's r- o i' 

financial Lexington alone, in 1817, there were more 

than sixty mechanical shops, and Louisville, 
the town next in importance, soon vied with Lexington. 
The increase of trade in the State demanded a better cir- 
culating medium than had existed before. In the earliest 
days, skins of wild animals had constituted the only cur- 
rency. Later on, Spanish milled silver dollars were intro- 
duced. These were cut into four parts to make quarters, 
which again were cut to obtain smaller bits. Of course 
dishonesty resulted and great loss was caused, and the need 
for something more satisfactory was strongly felt. 

We have learned that Kentuckians were opposed to 
banks. In 18 17, there existed in the State only one such 
Independent institution, the Bank of Kentucky, which was 
banks on a solid foundation. But, moved by the 

chartered ... 

exigencies of the time, the people went to 
rash extremes. The legislature of 18 17-18 chartered 
forty-six independent banks which were not required to 
redeem their notes with specie. The State was flooded 
with the paper of these banks, and a mere shadow of 
prosperity hung over the people. Speculation rose to an 



LOCAL AFFAIRS I 29 

exorbitant degree. Then the shadow disappeared, and the 
true financial condition was exposed. Before the end of 
the year 18 18, most of these unsubstantial banks were 
wrecked; and, in 1820, the legislature repealed the char- 
ters which gave them existence. 

With the banks went under also a vast number of 
speculators who had relied upon them. The suffering 
from debt was terrible. The cry for some means of relief 
resounded throughout the State. And now began an 
intense political conflict. 

The State became divided into two bitterly antagonis- 
tic factions, known as the Relief and Anti-Relief parties. 
Each enrolled many of the distinguished names two new 
of the time. On the one side may be men- state parties 
tioned William T. Barry, George M. Bibb, Joseph Desha, 
John Trimble, and John Rowan ; on the other, Richard C. 
Anderson, John J. Crittenden, R. A. Buckner, Sr., George 
Robertson, Christopher Tompkins, and Robert Wickliffe. 
At first the Relief party was stronger in the State. The 
great mass of debtors were in favor of the measures it 
advocated. General John Adair and Major William T. 
Barry, both Relief candidates, were elected governor and 
lieutenant governor. 

As a ''relief measure," the legislature of 1820-21 char- 
tered the Bank of the Commonwealth. This bank was 
allowed to issue $3,000,000 of paper money. Bank of the 
and was not required to redeem its notes in commonwealth 
specie. Soon the paper of the bank fell far below its face 
value, and creditors refused to receive it in payment of 
their debts. But the legislature had passed a further act, 
known as ''the two years' replevin law," under which 
every creditor was obliged to accept in payment of his 
debt the paper of the Bank of the Commonwealth, or 

KKNT. HIST. — 9 



130 FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 

receive nothing at all for two years, with the risk at the 
end of that time of further delays, or the failure of his 
securities. 

The question of the power of the legislature to pass 
such an act was brought before the judges of the State. 
Judge Clark's The first to give an opinion on the point 
decision ^^g Circuit Judge James Clark, of the Clark 

County district, who fearlessly declared the act unconsti- 
tutional. The Relief party was strong in numbers and 
power. The storm raged about him ; but no recognition 
of individual loss made Clark waver in pronouncing the 
judgment which seemed to him correct. He was brought 
before the legislature in the spring of 1822, and reso- 
lutions were entered requiring the governor to remove him 
from office. The resolutions, however, failed to receive the 
necessary two-thirds vote, and were consequently lost. 

All now anxiously awaited the decision of the court of 
appeals. This highest tribunal of the State was then filled 
. by men of recognized integrity and unsur- 

the court of passcd legal ability. John Boyle was chief 
justice, William Owsley and Benjamin Mills, 
associate justices. In the midst of an intense excitement 
which pervaded the entire State, the judges maintained 
a dignified silence, and awaited the time when they should 
be called upon to give a decision as a court. This occurred 
in the autumn of 1823. 

The verdict of the court sustained the decision of Clark 
and the other judges who had concurred with him, and 
declared the "replevin law" unconstitutional; that is, 
directly in opposition to the constitution of the United 
States, which provides that no State has the right to pass 
any law which shall impair the obligation of contracts. 
Now, there were many men in Kentucky at this time who 



LOCAL AFFAIRS 



31 



believed that a State had the right to nullify or disobey a 
law of the United States, if that law interfered with what 
seemed to them the right of the State. Thus was brought 
into the controversy the old point of divergence between 
the Federalist and Democratic parties of 1798. 

The mass of the people were for the time in sympathy 
with the Relief party. The decision of the judges awak- 
ened great opposition and caused intense ex- temporary 
citementin the State elections of 1824. The power of the 

Relief party 

result was victory for the Relief party. Gen- 
eral Joseph Desha, the Relief candidate, was elected gov- 
ernor by a majority of nearly 
sixteen thousand over his oppo- 
nent, Christopher Tompkins, of 
the opposite faction ; and Gen- 
eral Robert B. McAfee, also a 
Relief candidate, was elected 
lieutenant governor by a major- 
ity of about eight thousand over 
William B. Blackburn, of the 
Anti-Relief side. The Relief 
party also had a majority in 
both houses of the legislature. 
The judges of the court of 
appeals held ofhce for life, dur- 
ing good behavior. They could only be removed by the 
concurrence of two thirds of both houses, oid court of 
That their removal might be accompHshed, appeals 

^ . abolished 

the judges were brought before the legislature 
the following December. But as in the case of Judge 
Clark, the number of votes necessary for their removal 
was not obtained. Nevertheless, it was the will of the 
majority that the judges should be removed. 




Joseph Desha 



132 FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 

Another means to accomplish this object was now re- 
sorted to. A bill was introduced to repeal the act undei 
which the court of appeals had been established. If thie 
were carried, then a new court might be organized in 
harmony with the will of the people. For three days, 
before crowded houses, the bill was debated. Each side 
put forth its best efforts in this unique contest. Logical 
and brilliantly illogical arguments mingled with the bold 
charge and counter-charge of the combatants. The bill 
passed both houses by a large majority, and was signed 
by the governor. 

A new court of appeals was soon organized. William 

T. Barry was appointed chief justice, John Trimble, James 

Haggin, and Rezin H. Davidge, associate jus- 

A new court ^^ r i 

of appeals tices. The clerk of the old court refused to 
organized ^.^^ ^^^ ^^^ papers and records of the court 

to the new clerk, whereupon the office was broken open to 
obtain them. 

During all this time of trial, the old judges stood firm 
in their conviction, and continued to sit as a court, in spite 
of opposition. A majority of the lawyers recognized 
them as the only court and obeyed their decisions. Some 
recognized the new court, and others refused to decide 
between them. 

An entertaining incident^ which expresses the high 
excitement of this time, is recorded as having taken place 
How a riot in Lexington. There occurred in the streets 
was quieted ^^ ^^^^ ^^^^ ^ regular pitched battle on this 
subject. Men appeared armed with pickaxes, with which 
they tore up the sidewalks, that they might have bricks 
to hurl at those who differed from them. When the 
riot was at its height, R. J. Breckinridge and Charlton 
Hunt, young men then in the beginning of their careers, 



LOCAL AFFAIRS 



133 



came out with locked arms and walked through the midst 
of the combatants. These young men were opposing 
candidates, the former being an adherent of the old court 




How a Riot was Quieted 



and the latter, of the new court. It is needless to add 
that the rioters were covered with shame, and quiet 
ensued. 



134 FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 

Party names were now shifted. The Relief party be- 
came the New Court party ; the Anti-ReUef party, the 
Old Court party. The elections of 1825 were 

Old Court and . . 

New Court fought under this issue. The storm had gath- 
par les ercd velocity as it raged. This was the most 

exciting period in the whole tempest. But a calm was 
soon to follow. The result indicated a great change in 
the sentiment of the people. A large majority of the Old 
Court candidates was elected to the House, and the fol- 
lowing year a majority of that party was likewise gained 
in the Senate. 

The new court was abolished and its acts annulled. The 
old court was reestablished, and the salaries were paid to 
the judges for the time during which they had been de- 
barred from office. Of course the " replevin law " was 
now repealed. The paper of the Bank of the Common- 
wealth was destroyed, and branches of the United States 
Bank were established at Louisville and at Lexington. 
Again the conservative element was victorious in Ken- 
tucky. 

Quiet being now attained, a matter of national politics 
next divided the people of the State. In 1824, the vote 
Henry Clay's for United States President was thrown into 
o^powerTn""'' the Housc of Representatives. Henry Clay, 
Kentucky member of Congress from the Ashland district, 

cast his vote for John Quincy Adams, and it was perhaps 
due to Clay's exertion that Adams was elected. The 
majority of Kentuckians were eager for the election of Gen- 
eral Jackson, the closest contending candidate. Clay's sup- 
port of Adams was received with disapproval throughout 
the State. This dissatisfaction among his own people arose 
at the time of Clay's highest national power. He had just 
succeeded in carrying in Congress his famous Missouri 



LOCAL AFFAIRS 



135 




John Quincy Adams 



Compromise bill, by which the difficulties between the 
North and South on the slavery question were tempo- 
rarily subdued. Although an account of Clay's work 
belongs more to the history of 
the United States than to that 
of Kentucky, his influence was 
so distinct upon the political 
affairs of the Commonwealth 
during his day, that it must not 
be lost sight of. 

The mass of the Old Court 
party, which represented the con- 
servative element of the State, 
warmly upheld Clay. This fac- 
tion now became merged into a 
new party that had adopted the 

name National Republican, while the disagreeing faction 
united with the Democratic Republican party. The oppo- 
sition to Adams had been obliged to smolder change of party 
during the time of local agitation ; but when ^^™®^ 
he was offered as candidate for reelection against Jackson, 
the latter carried the State by a majority of eight thousand. 
The Democratic RepubHcans carried also all the State 
elections with the exception of that of governor. Thomas 
Metcalf, the candidate on the National Republican ticket, 
was elected over William T. Barry, by a majority of only 
a few hundred. 

For a time, the control of State politics wavered between 
these two parties. But finally, Henry Clay's great ability 
forced for him the renewed support of his triumph of the 
fellow citizens. In 1 831, he was elected to the National Re- 

. ■, , 1 , -NT • 1 publicans 

United States Senate. Although the National 
Republicans obtained a majority in the legislature, the 



136 



FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 



triumph of that party in the State was not yet as- 
sured. 

A vigorous contest for governor occurred in 1832, and 
the Democratic RepubUcan candidate, John Breathitt, 

was elected over Judge 
R. A. Buckner, Sr., by 
.a small majority. In 
the exciting presidential 
campaign of 1832, Clay 
and Jackson were op- 
posing candidates. The 
State gave Clay a ma- 
jority of over seven 
thousand votes. Thus 
also was attained the 
complete victory of the 
National Republican 
party in Kentucky. 
Under various names 
and through various 
changes, that party 
held control of the politics of the State thereafter for 
more than thirty years. 

In the spring of 1825, Kentucky arrayed herself in 
proudest attire to do honor to the French hero of the 
Revolution, the Marquis de Lafayette. The 
distinguished visitor was received with ova- 
tions at Louisville, Frankfort, Versailles, Lexington, and 
Maysville ; and each place vied with the other in the grace 
of the dinners and balls given him. The State had now 
recovered from its first financial crisis, and home life in 
the largest towns was as luxurious as that in Philadelphia 
or Boston. 




Andrew Jackson 



Social and lit- 
erary matters 



LOCAL AFFAIRS 



137 




Marquis de Lafayette 



Perhaps this was the era of Kentucky's highest fame. 
Her statesmen towered by the side of the greatest in the 
Union. Her lawyers were 
renowned. Transylvania 
University, under the presi- 
dency of the accomplished 
and fascinating Dr. Horace 
Holly, had attained high 
rank, and was recognized 
as a great institution of 
learning, not only in the 
United States, but abroad. 
For seven years Professor 
C. S. Rafinesque,^ known 
to the scientists of the 
world, had occupied the 
chair of Natural Sciences 
and Modern Languages. During this time, he projected his 
dream of establishing botanical gardens at Lexington, and 
though he was unsuccessful in this undertaking, it added 
a charm to the town and to the State. By Dr. Holly's 
resignation in 1825 the University suffered a loss, but the 
brilliancy of his day lingered over it for years. 

In Lexington, also, during this time, was established a 
Lyceum, or literary society, in which the best talent of the 
day took part in lectures and debates. Here, „ . 

■' ^ Scientific and 

in 1827, Thomas Harris Barlow constructed artistic pro- 
the first model railroad and locomotive ever 
successfully run in western America, and here he 
achieved his most complete invention, known as Barlow's 
Planetarium. Neither was Kentucky barren of artistic 

1 The Life and Writings of C. S. Rafinesque. By Richard Ellsworth Call. 
M.A., M.Sc, M.D. Filson Club Publication No. 10, 



138 FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 

productions. During this time Matthew Harris Jouett was 
producing a series of portraits which have given to his 
name an ever-increasing fame. Many prominent Ken- 
tuckians of his day were painted by him. On the walls 
of the old homesteads of the State hang these priceless 

relics of cherished 
ancestors. Jouett, 
whose Revolution- 
ary forefathers had 
taken part in the 
founding of the 
Commonwealth, 
was born in Mer- 
cer County, April 
22, 1788, and died 
in Fayette County, 
August 10, 1827, 
at the early age of 
thirty-nine. Some- 
thing of his talent 
for making por- 
traits and for 

Matthew H. Jouett ^Cauty of Coloriug 

descended to his 
pupil, Oliver Frazer of Lexington (born 1808, died 1854). 
Older in point of time than the latter was another artist- 
son of Lexington, Joseph H. Bush (born 1793, died 1865), 
who did vigorous, though perhaps less polished work than 
the others mentioned. 

One of the most celebrated of Kentucky artists was the 
sculptor, Joel T. Hart, who was born in Clark County in 
1 8 10, and died in Florence, Italy, in 1877. Hart's circum- 
stances were restricted, and he was obliged to begin his 




LOCAL AFFAIRS 



139 



career as a stonemason. But by virtue of the genius 
within him, and that necessary accompaniment to genius, — - 
the power to labor unfalteringly, — he succeeded in the 
profession toward which his ideal ever aspired. He made 
several statues of prominent men of the day ; but his chief 
claim to fame rests upon the imaginative group to which 
he gave the name Woman Triumphant.^ He spent twelve 
years' work upon this statue, death alone ending his 
efforts to perfect it. 



RECAPITULATION 



George Madison, newly elected gover- 
nor, dies. 

Power of legislature to order new 
election agitated. 

Gabriel Slaughter, lieutenant gover- 
nor, succeeds. 

European wars interrupt foreign 
trade. 

Home manufactories established. 

War ended, foreign trade resumed. 

American manufactories fail. 

Gold and silver banished from use. 

Commodities bring high prices. 

Specie payment resumed after the 
war. 

Financial depression ensues. 

Kentucky prosperous for a time. 

Shops in Lexington and Louisville. 

Unique currency of the early days. 

A better currency needed. 

Wild extreme of the legislature. 

Forty-six banks chartered. 



State flooded with paper money. 

Banks and speculators break. 

Commonwealth's Bank a "relief" 
measure. 

" Two years' replevin law " passed. 

Judge Clark decides against the law. 

Failure of attempt to remove him 
from office. 

Court of appeals concurs with Judge' 
Clark. 

State rights element in the ques- 
tion. 

Relief party carries the State. 

General Joseph Desha governor. 

Failure of attempt to remove court of 
appeals judges. 

Charter of the court of appeals re- 
pealed. 

A new court organized. 

Old court firmly guards papers, etc. 

New court takes forcible possession. 

An entertaining incident. 



1 In 1884 a Hart Memorial Association was organized at Lexington by 
Mrs. Issa Desha Breckinridge, for the purpose of raising ^5000 with which to 
purchase of Messrs. Tiffany & Co., of New York, Woman Triumphant. The 
statue was secured, and is now in one of the public buildings of the city. 



140 



FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 



Old Court and New Court parties. 

A change of sentiment in the State. 

Old Court party victorious. 

A return to national politics. 

Henry Clay's vote for President 
Adams. 

Dissatisfaction occasioned in Ken- 
tucky. 

Tvi'^o nevs' parties. 

The Democratic Republicans elect all 
the State officers except governor. 

Thomas Metcalf chosen governor. 

Victory wavers between the two par- 
ties. 



John Breathitt, Democratic Repub- 
lican, elected governor. 

Henry Clay elected to the United 
States Senate. 

Final triumph of National Repub- 
licans in the State. 

Lafayette's visit to Kentucky. 

A brilliant era. 

Transylvania University. 

Dr. Holly and Professor Rafinesque. 

Botanical gardens projected at Lex- 
ington. 

Thomas H. Barlow, inventor. 

The artists of Kentucky. 



CHAPTER XIII 



CIVIL AFFAIRS AND THE MEXICAN WAR, 1 836-1 849 



The National Republican party became merged into 
the Whig party, and the affairs of Kentucky were now 
controlled by that conservative element. As Rise of the 
an evidence of this change of sentiment in the ^^^^ ^^^^ 
State, James Clark, the judge who gave the decision 
against the replevin laws, was elected governor in 1836 
The elections of the following- 
year gave a continued triumph 
to the Whigs. It was as a re- 
sult of a congressional contest 
of this year that one of the most 
gifted sons of Kentucky was 
brought within the recognition 
of the nation. 

Among those men who shed 
luster upon Kentucky in the 
early days of the 
present century, 
none surpassed, if any equaled, 
Richard H. Menefee. He was 
born in Bath County in 1809. 
His public career began in 
1832, before he had completed 

his twenty-third year, when he was appointed Common- 
wealth's attorney. With one term in the State legislature, 

141 



Richard H. 
Menefee 




Richard H. Menefee 



142 



FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 



one term in the Congress of the United States as the 
Whig representative of his district, and less than two 
years' legal practice at the Fayette bar, his brief life 
closed at the age of thirty-two. In legal ability and the 
powers of oratorical persuasion he has never been sur- 
passed, and in those dis- 
tinctive characteristics of 
high-spirited chivalry which 
mark the Kentuckian, he has 
never had a superior. But 
his name is connected with 
no great event in history. 
Such men are forgotten un- 
less they are held up in grate- 
ful remembrance before the 
people of the State upon 
which they brought honor 
in their day and generation. 
And it must be understood 
that this was the day of 
great men in Kentucky. 
From the long list of nota- 
ble names, one or two may be selected as representative 
of the others. Thomas F. Marshall was" born in Frank- 
fort, June 7, 1 80 1, and died at his old home, 
"Buck Pond," near Versailles in Woodford 
County, September 22, 1864. In wide scholarship and 
fervent, imaginative oratory he was rarely gifted. As 
a speaker he possessed the rather unusual combination of 
vigorous logic and captivating brilliancy. If his moral 
character had equaled his intellectual ability, he might 
have made an enduring impression upon his country. 
In the beginning of his second term. President Jackson 




Thomas F. Marshall 



Thomas F 
Marshall 



CIVIL AFFAIRS AND THE MEXICAN WAR 143 

vetoed the bill to recharter the Bank of the United States. 
As a result of this measure State banks sprang up all 
over the Union. The legislature of Kentucky, in 1833-34, 
established the Bank of Kentucky, the Bank Financial 
of Louisville, and the Northern Bank of Ken- ^^^pression 
tucky. Paper money became abundant; as usual, specula- 
tion increased, and bankruptcy followed. In the year 
1837, all the banks in the United States were obliged to 
suspend specie payment. By 
prudent management, however, 
they were able to resume specie 
payment the following year. 
But unfortunately for the coun- 
try, the spirit of speculation had 
been stifled only momentarily, 
not destroyed. Business ■ ven- 
tures increased, and again, the 
next year, there occurred a uni- 
versal suspension of banks. This 
financial depression not only ex- 
isted in Kentucky, but was gen- 
eral throughout the United States for several years 
1842 an attempt was made to revive the old "relief 
measures." But there was no danger now of the passage 
of any radical laws by the legislature. The people had at 
last learned that legislation does not remedy evils. 

Still the Whigs led in State politics. In 1840, Robert 
P. Letcher, who had been a member of Congress for ten 
years, was elected governor by a majority of continued 
nearly sixteen thousand votes over the nomi- "^^^e control 
nee of the Democratic party — by which name the Demo- 
cratic Republicans were now called. But the political 
contests of 1844 were the most exciting that had occurred 




William Owsley 



In 



144 FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 

in the State for many years. The Whig nominee for 
governor was Judge WilHam Owsley, who will be remem- 
bered as one of the distinguished judges of the old court 
of appeals during the famous controversy. The Demo- 
cratic nominee was the popular Major William O. Butler, 
later General Butler of the Mexican War. Butler was a 
man of ability. Furthermore, he had been a brave sol- 
dier. He had survived the slaughter at Raisin and par-> 
ticipated in the victory at New Orleans. Nevertheless, 
the Whigs carried the day. Judge Owsley was elected 
by a majority of about forty-five hundred votes. 

In the autumn of this year the election for President 
of the United States took place. Again Henry Clay had 
Issue of the been chosen the nominee of the Whig party, 
presidential Kentucky stood true to Clay, and o^ave him a 

election , . ^ , ■' ^ 

majority of over nine thousand votes. But 
James K. Polk, of Tennessee, was elected after a very 
close contest. The issue had turned upon the question of 

the annexation of Texas to the 
United States. Clay opposed this 
measure for various reasons, two 
of which were that it would in- 
crease the slave-holding territory i 
in the United States, and thatj 
it would inevitably result in war 
with Mexico. Just before the 
inauguration of Polk, and under 
his advice, the acting President, 
Tyler, sie^ned the bill for the an- 

James K. Polk ^ > fc> 

nexation of Texas to the Union. 
As had been foreseen by Clay, war with Mexico was 
inevitable. Immediately after the annexation was accom- 
plished, the authorities of Texas sent an urgent request 




CIVIL AFFAIRS AND THE MEXICAN WAR 



145 




Zachary Taylor 



to the President to forward an army for their protection. 
General Zachary Taylor, of the United States outbreak of the 
army, a Kentuckian by adoption, was dis- Mexican war 
patched. Hostilities immediately began. On the 13th 
of May, 1846, Congress declared war with Mexico. Al- 
though the people of Kentucky, 
by their vote for Clay, had 
shown their opposition to the 
measure which brought about 
the Mexican War, yet, when 
war was declared, they were 
ready, as they had always been, 
to aid the Union in her time 
of need. Of the fifty thou- 
sand troops which the President 
called for, Kentucky quickly 
offered ten thousand and many 
more were eager to be called 

into service. Three of the important officers of this war were 
Kentuckians, — Zachary Taylor, major general of the regu- 
lar army; William O. Butler, major general of volunteers; 
and Thomas Marshall, brigadier general of volunteers. 

One hundred and five companies, nearly twice as many 
as were called for, went out from Kentucky to join General 
Taylor's army. The first regiment of infantry, Kentucky 
comprising nine companies from Louisville, ^^^^^^ 
was commanded by Colonel Ormsby; the second, by 
Colonel William R. McKee, of Lexington, Lieutenant 
Colonel Henry Clay, Jr., and Major Gary H. Fry. The 
first regiment of cavalry was commanded by Colonel 
Humphrey Marshall, of Louisville, Lieutenant Colonel 
Ezekiel H. Field, of Woodford County, and Major John P 
Gaines, of Boone County. 

KENT. HIST. 10 



146 FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 

The war was fairly commenced before the Kentucky 
troops reached their destination. The first action in which 

any of them fought 
was the charge on the 
city of Monterey. 
The Louisville legion 
took part in that suc- 
cessful assault, Sep- 
tember 24, and were 
reported to have 
showed obedience, 
, patience, discipline, 
) and calm courage. 
General Butler was 
wounded, and Major 
/ Philip N. Barbour 
was killed. The leg- 
' ,^ ^ .. , „ islature the following 

Humphrey Marshall ^ 

year, 1 847, passed 
resolutions in compliment of the Louisville legion, and 
ordered swords to be presented to Generals Taylor and 
Butler, and to the widow of Major Barbour. 

The only important action in the Mexican War in which 
Kentuckians largely took part was the memorable battle 
Batueof of Buena Vista, fought February 22 and 23, 

Buena Vista 1847, around which have gathered so many 
stirring recollections. Here fell two of the most gallant 
sons of Kentucky, — Colonel William R. McKee and 
Lieutenant Colonel Henry Clay (eldest son of Henry Clay 
the statesman). One fifth of the troops in this battle were 
from Kentucky, and of the seven hundred and twenty- 
three men killed or wounded, one hundred and sixty-two 
were from this State. 




CIVIL AFFAIRS AND THE MEXICAN WAR 147 



The successful issue of this battle led to the capture of 
Vera Cruz, the daring attack upon Cerro Gordo, and the 
final capture of the City of Mexico. With the triumph 
of the American arms, peace was gained m Texas, and a 
vast territory was surrendered by Mexico to the United 
States. An independent company of one hundred men 
from Clark County, commanded by Captain John S. Wil- 







—J 



General Taylor at Buena Vista 



liams (afterward General Williams of the Confederate 
army and later United States senator), took part in the 
battle of Cerro Gordo, April i8, 1849, where the Mexicans 
lost in killed and wounded one thousand men, besides 
three thousand who were taken as prisoners, and all their 
materials of war. 



148 FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 

The Kentucky troops buried their dead comrades upon 

the field of Buena Vista ; but a few months later the State 

brouo:ht home the ashes of some of her heroes 

Funeral cere- ° 

monies at to rcst in the cemetery of the capital. On the 

20th of July, 1847, the solemn and interesting 
ceremonies took place. An address was delivered by the 
Rev. John H. Brown of the Presbyterian Church, and an 
oration by John C. Breckinridge. 

: A little later the State erected a handsome monument 
in memory of the heroes. It was for the occasion of its 
unveiling that Theodore O'Hara wrote his 
immortal elegy, The Bivouac of the Dead. 
O'Hara,^ born in Danville, Kentucky, in 1820, was the 
son of Kane O'Hara, an Irishman exiled for his religion, 
who was celebrated in his day in Kentucky for profound 
classical scholarship. Theodore O'Hara had himself 
served with distinction in the Mexican War. Entering 
the army under the appointment of a captaincy, he 
retired with the rank of brevet major. His heart was 
stirred by the events through which he had just passed, 
and his genius expressed itself in as great a poem of the 
kind as was ever written. It is thrilling even to think of 
the scene in the cemetery at Frankfort that summer day 
— with the State's great dead resting all around under 
the shade of primeval forest trees — when the soldier 
poet lifted up his voice in the impressive measure of his 
verse : 

" The muffled drum's sad roll has beat 
The soldier's last tattoo; 
No more on life's parade shall meet 
The brave and daring few. 

i Q Hara and His Elegies. By George W. Ranck. 



CIVIL AFFAIRS AND THE MEXICAN WAR 



49 



On fame's eternal camping ground 
Their silent tents are spread, 

And Glory guards, with solemn round, 
The bivouac of the dead." 



In 1848 John J. Crittenden retired from the Senate of 
the United States to accept the Whig nomination for 
governor of Kentucky. He was elected by 
a large majority over his opponent, Lazarus criwenden^ 
W. Powell, one of the most notable men in elected gover- 

' nor 

the Democratic party of that day. Crittenden 
was born in the 'county of Woodford in 1786. After he 
was called to the bar, he moved to that portion of the State 
known as the Green River 
country, then attracting many "^^^ — 

young men of talent. From 
Russellville, in the county of 
Logan, in 18 11, he was sent, 
for the first time, as a repre- 
sentative to the legislature. In 
1 81 7, he was chosen United 
States senator. During the 
troublous times of the Old 
and New Court controversy 
he again consented to take 
part in his State's affairs. 
Accordingly he was elected a 
representative from Frankfort, 
where he had settled to prac- 
tice law. In 1835, he was 

again called into national politics. He held the office of gov- 
ernor of Kentucky until 1850, when he resigned to become 
attorney-general in President Fillmore's cabinet. John L. 
Helm, the lieutenant governor, was inaugurated governor. 




John J, Crittenden 



ISO 



FOUNDING OF THE COMMONWEALTH 



In 1849, the State constitution was revised for the third 

time. Four important changes may be noted: (i) The 

iudiciarv, which formerly had been appointed 

Third revision ^ •' ' i 1 • i 1 

of the consti- by the governor, was made elective by the 
people. (2) The power which the legislature 
had possessed to raise money for debt on the credit of 
the State was aboUshed. (3) Certain provisions for the 
continuation of slavery were made. (4) No convention to 
revise the constitution could be called without a two- 
thirds vote of the entire voting population of the State. 



Rise of the Whig party. 

James Clark, governor. 

Richard H. Menefee. 

Thomas F. Marshall. 

Charter of United States banks re- 
pealed. 

Three banks chartered by the legisla- 
ture. 

Paper money plentiful. 

Speculation followed by bankruptcy. 

Momentary return of prosperity, fol- 
lowed by wide-spread failure. 

Attempt to revive " relief measures." 

Extreme measures not to be carried. 

Robert P. Letcher governor. 

Exciting contest for the succeeding 
governor. 

William Owsley, Whig, elected. 

Clay the Whig nominee for Presi- 
dent. 

Kentucky gives him a large ma- 
jority. 

The annexation of Texas the ques- 
tion of the contest. 

Clay's opposition to the annexation 
defeats him. 

War with Mexico inevitable. 



RECAPITULATION 

General Taylor of the United States 
army dispatched to Texas. 

Hostilities begin. 

War declared. 

Kentucky's attitude toward the war. 

She offers 10,000 militia. 

Kentuckians high officers in the war. 

The Kentucky troops. 

The Louisville legion. 

The charge on Monterey. 

Battle of Buena Vista. 

One fifth of the troops Kentuckians. 

Distinguished Kentuckians slain. 

The battle leads to the American vic- 
tory. 

Peace in Texas. 

Acquisition of a vast territory. 

Ashes of the heroes of Buena Vista 
buried at Frankfort. 

Memorial monument later erected. 

O'Hara and -his Bivouac of the 
Dead. 

John J. Crittenden governor. 

Succeeded by John L. Helm in 1850. 

Crittenden's ability. 

State constitution revised in 1849. 

Four important changes made. 



IV— THE CIVIL WAR, 1850-186J 



CHAPTER XIV 

THE SITUATION IN KENTUCKY, 1 850-1860 

Long before the peal of thunder and the flash of light- 
ning announce the downpour of rain, forces have been at 
work in the heavens to produce a storm, causes of the 
Long before the outbreak of the Civil War, civn war 
events had been slowly tending toward the inevitable con- 
flict. With the first slaves introduced upon American soil 
began the conditions which brought about the final tragedy. 
Of course there were many branches that grew out of the 
main vine, — the slavery question, — and one was so im- 
portant and grew so rapidly as time went on that it seemed 
to many the parent vine, — the original source of the con- 
troversy. This was the different and directly opposite 
views held by the North and the South as to the nature of 
the government of the United States, the former believing 
that sovereign power resided in the Federal government ; 
the latter, that it resided in the States.^ 

In the warm Southern States where cotton was ex- 
tensively produced, slavery was deemed a ne- slavery in 
cessity to the agricultural life. This was not Kentucky 
the case in Kentucky. But the institution had existed 
and flourished from the earliest days of the settlement of 

1 The War betcveen the States. By Alexander H. Stephens. 



52 



THE CIVIL WAR 



the region. In 1850 the population of the State was 
982,405, of which over 200,000 were slaves. 

On the great landed estates of the Commonwealth the 
lot of the slave was comparatively happy. And yet, 
over and over again, in important conventions of the 
State, this problem of human property had claimed the 
consideration of the people. For years, Henry Clay had 
been president of the American Colonization Society, 
and he had advocated a system of gradual emancipation. 
Many of the prominent citizens of the State, who were 
large slave owners, concurred in this humane project; but 
they were in the minority, and we have seen that the 
revised constitution of 1849 provided for the continuation 
of slavery. 

This provision in the constitution grew out of Ken- 
tucky's resentment of the course which extreme persons 
Effect of ^^'^ ^^^ North were beginning to pursue toward 

abolitionism the slave-holding States of the South. It had 
its immediate cause in a desire to oppose the conduct of 
certain abolitionists who, as early as 1841, began a system 
of stealing away slaves from their masters and running 
them into Ohio (a free State) and thence into Canada. 
These persons had accomplices stationed in different parts 
of Kentucky, and along routes known only to themselves. 
When the negroes were stolen, they were passed on from 
one station to another until they were safely out of the 
country. Thus the means by which this business was ac- 
complished received the name of the " underground rail- 
road." Again and again the conspirators were discovered 
in different parts of the State, and were tried and con- 
demned ; ^ but still the work went on because those engaged 

1 The most noted case was that of Miss Delia A. Webster, who was tried 
ftt Lexington, in 1844, ^^'^ sentenced to two years in the State penitentiary. 



THE SITUATION IN KKNTUCKY 



153 



in it believed they were doing right. Hundreds of slaves 
were stolen in this way from their owners. 

In many cases the slaves were unwilling to leave their 




Negroes' Dance 

homes. While they greatly desired freedom, they were as 
a class a peaceable people that dreaded change, characteristics 
They knew the life they were living. It had of the slaves 
sore trials ; but they realized that they would always be 



But the same jury that had condemned her for what they judged a crime, 
signed a petition to the governor for her pardon. She was released because 
she was a woman, while her companion in the work was sentenced to serve 
fifteen years in the penitentiary. 



154 



THE CIVIL WAR 



provided for. They knew nothing about the life into 
which they would be taken. Moreover, the careless, ir- 
responsible existence they led made them unthinking. 
They lived for the moment, and if they, could steal off at 
night and meet together at some neighboring " quarters " 
for a dance, they gave themselves up to the frolic with 
reckless disregard of the punishment which might follow 
on the morrow. 

The leader of the antislavery movement in Kentucky 

was CaSSmS An abolition 
M. Clay, a newspaper 

man of strong will, 
fearless in advocating 
his opinions. In 1845, 
he began to issue at 
Lexington an abolition 
newspaper called The 
Tine American. Its 
tone was inflammatory 
and was considered alto- 
gether improper. The 
citizens of that town 
met and decided that 
its publication was detri- 
mental to the peace of 
the community, and that 
it must be discontinued. 
When the editor, who 
was at home ill at the time, was informed of the action of 
the meeting, he sent back a defiant reply ; whereupon a com- 
mittee of sixty of the most honorable citizens of the place 
were deputed to go to the office of The True American and 
take possession of it. The whole proceeding was managed 



'■; |jc~- 


1 




% 


^SIHHIH 


m 



Cassius M. Clay 



THE SITUATION IN KENTUCKY 1 55 

in the most orderly manner. The secretary containing the 
private papers of the editor was sent to him at his home., 
The press, type, etc., were packed by printers and sent to 
the care of a reliable firm in Cincinnati, and the editor 
was informed that he would find them there awaiting his 
order. 

Of course the committee of sixty had to be tried, for 
their action was illegal ; but the jury, without hesitation, 
gave a verdict of "not guilty." All over the The state 
State enthusiastic meetings were held in com- acS^^of^^ ^^^ 
mendation of the action of the citizens of Lex- I'exington 
ington, and strong resolutions were passed recommending 
the prevention of such incendiary publications as TJie True 
American in the State. This shows that the unwise con- 
duct of extreme abolitionists awakened much excited feel- 
ing that otherwise might not have existed. 

Kentucky was rapidly growing intensely proslavery. 
The majority of her people believed to a certain extent in 
the doctrine of State rights. All their svmpa- „ , 

*^ ^ y f Proslavery and 

thies were in harmony with the customs of the union 
Southern States ; and yet, at the same time, 
Kentucky had ever been most ardently attached to the 
Union. As an evidence of this fact note the words which 
the legislature of 1850 ordered to be engraved on a block 
of Kentucky marble that was to be placed in the " General 
Washington Monument" at Washington City: "Under 
the auspices of heaven and the precepts of Washington, 
Kentucky will be the last to give up the Union." 

Slowly, steadily, the division between the two sections 
of country was widening. But all the while the ^^^ ^^^ , 
great and patriotic mind of Henry Clay was compromise 
struggling to adjust the differences which 
threatened dissolution to the Union. The prediction 



156 



THE CIVIL WAR 



which Clay had made concerning the annexation of Texas 
in 1845 was fast being fulfilled. Already a war with 
Mexico had been fought. Out of the vast territory 
ceded by Mexico in 1848 to the United States, n^w 
States were forming. Already California had framed its 
constitution and asked for admission into the Union. The 
question whether slavery should be allowed in the new 
States raised a conflict of opposition on the one hand, 



\ [diiii4tii;i ^^'~Tr"^ - 




Clay's Home, Ashland, Kentucky 

and advocacy on the other, such as had never before 
occurred in the nation. 

In this condition of affairs, on the 29th of January, 1850, 
Henry Clay came forward in the United States Senate 
with his celebrated Compromise Resolutions, which were 
known later as the Omnibus Bill. Clay's earnest speech 
in exposition of these measures of peace lasted two days, 
beginning February 5. For months the bill called forth 
exciting debates in the halls of Congress ; but finally the 
rarious measures which composed it were passed before 
the close of that memorable year. This was Clay's last 



THE SITUATION IN KENTUCKY 1 5/ 

great effort. Two years later he died, just prior to the 

downfall of the Whig party, of which he had long been 

the leader in spirit, if not in place. 

In 185 1, Lazarus W. Powell, one of the most talented 

members of the Democratic party, was elected governor. 

But the Whio:s secured a majority of the other 

^ •' ^ state politics 

State offices and elected most of their men to 

both houses of Congress. At this time the first Emanci- 
pation ticket in Kentucky was run, with Cassius M. Clay 
at its head, as nominee for governor. His vote, however, 
was only about thirty-six hundred. Archibald Dixon, who 
had been the Whig nominee for governor against Powell, 
was elected United States senator in the place of Henry 
Clay, resigned. The days of the Whig party were num- 
bered. 

With the election of Franklin Pierce, the Democratic 
nominee for President, in 1852, the Whig party disap- 
peared from national politics, never to reap- Downfall of the 
pear. In Kentucky, for several years longer, ^^^^ ^^^"^^ 
it continued to exist as a distinct organization, unde; the 
leadership of John J. Crittenden. 
But a disruption had occurred in 
its ranks. Some of its members, 
more extreme in one direction, had 
gone off with the abolition move- 
ment ; while others, of the oppo- 
site tendency, had united with the 
Democratic forces. 

In the unsettled, agitated condi- 
tion of the nation it was inevita- 
ble that new parties should arise ^ ... ^. 

^ Franklin Pierce 

to embody the various opinions 

the times inspired. The American or Know-Nothing 




53 



THE CIVIL WAR 



party, as it was commonly called, appeared like a meteor 
only to fall like a meteor. It existed from 1853 to 1856. 
Know-Nothing ^^ the Kentucky elections of 1855 for State 
party officers and members of Congress this ticket 

was mainly successful. Charles S. Morehead, a former 
Whig, became governor. 

But the variations in the politics of the State were like| 
the waverings of a newly started pendulum before it finally 

assumes its regU- Democratic 
lar beat. The supremacy 

hour of Democratic su- 
premacy was at hand. In 
1856, John C. Breckinridge 
of Kentucky, the Democratic 
nominee for Vice President, 
was elected, with James Bu- 
chanan as President. Young 
Breckinridge was peculiarly 
fitted to become the leader 
of the Democratic forces 
of his State. He was 
brave, with a winning 
manner and a ready ora- 
tory. His sympathies went 
out ardently toward the 
South in the question which 
In the ensuing State elections, 
the Democrats were victorious. In 1859, Beriah Magoffin, 
Democrat, was elected governor, and a majority of Demo- 
crats was obtained in both houses of the legislature. 

Although the Democracy held the scepter of power, yet 
there still existed in the State that old conservative element 
whose influence has been repeatedly noted. This element 




John C- Breckinridge 

was now before the nation. 



THE SITUATION IN KENTUCKY 



159 



has been known to us most recently under the appellation 
Whig. Left now without a party name, the men of that 
policy became designated for a time simply as The conserva- 
the ** Opposition." But they were soon to tive element 
make for themselves a name which is expressive of the 
work they did for their State and the nation, — Conserva- 
tive Union party. 

This body was composed of some of the purest and most 
patriotic men the State has ever produced. In their num- 
ber will be found the names of such able judges as L. W. 
Andrews, R. A. Buckner, C. F. Burnam, W. B. Kinkead, 
Joseph R. Underwood, and Nathaniel Wolfe ; of such dis- 
tinguished statesmen as J-oshua F. Bell and James Guthrie ; 
and of such brilliant editors as George D. Prentice of the 
homsvillQ /oiir/ial, John H. Harney of the Louisville Z>^;;/^- 
cra^, and D. C. Wickliffe of the Lexington Observer mtd 
Reporter. And there were many others who, in the legis- 
lature, in public speeches to the citizens of the State, and 
in newspaper editorials, likewise labored to avert the 
threatened dissolution of the nation. Of these men, John 
J. Crittenden stood as the representative type in the Federal 
Congress. All hopes were now turned to him to save the 
Union. 

RECAPITULATION 



The North and the South hold con- 
trary views. 

They interpret the Federal constitu- 
tion differently. 

Slavery becoming a serious prob- 
lem. 

Slavery not necessary to Kentucky. 

Large slave population of the State. 

The slave problem repeatedly dis- 
turbs the people. 

Gradual emancipation advocated. 



Extreme abolitionists excite temper 
in the people. 

"The underground railroad." 

Many slaves captured in this way. 

The careless lives of the slaves. 

An abolition newspaper forcibly dis- 
continued. 

The " committee of sixty " tried and 
acquitted. 

Lexington's action commended by 
the State. 



i6o 



THE CIVIL WAR 



Kentucky opposed to abolitionism. 

Her belief in State Rights. 

Her ardent attachment to the Union. 

Henry Clay's prophesy concerning 
Texas fulfilled. 

New States ask admission to the 
Union. 

Question of slavery in the new States. 

Clay's Resolutions of 1850. 

The various measures carried. 

Clay's death two years later. 

Whigs carry most of the elections of 
1851. 

Lazarus W. Powell, Democrat, 
elected governor. 

Cassius M. Clay heads an Emancipa- 
tion ticket in 1 85 1. 



Archibald Dixon succeeds Clay in 

United States Senate. 
National downfall of the Whig party. 
Crittenden holds it together a little 

longer in Kentucky. 
Rise and fall of the Know-Nothing 

party. 
Democratic supremacy. 
John C. Breckinridge the Democratic 

leader. 
Beriah Magoffin, Democrat, governor. 
Old Whig party first called the " Op- 
position." 
Becomes the Conservative Union 

party. 
Its members men of weight in the 

community. 



CHAPTER XV 



KENTUCKY'S POSITION OF NEUTRAUTY, Nov. i86o-June i86i 

It is a curious coincidence that the two men who were 
destined to take the poHtical lead in the great conflict of 
the nation were born in Kentucky, within one 
year of each other. Jefferson Davis was born Davis, natives 
June 3, 1808, in that part of Christian County "^^^"^"^^^ 
which afterward became Todd County. In his infancy his 
family moved , , 
southward to 
Mississippi, 
where he be- 
came imbued 
with the spirit 
and the customs 
of the planters. 
Abraham Lin- 
coln was born in 
a log cabin in 
that p art o f 
Hardin County 
which afterward 
became Larue 
County, on the 
1 2th day of 
February, 1809. 

KENT. HIST. — II l6l 




Abraham Lincoln 



1 62 THE CIVIL WAR 

In his boyhood, his family moved northward into the 
uncultivated regions of the newly opened West. From 
a life of vigorous physical toil and earnest mental exer- 
tion, he learned those lessons of truth and freedom which 
prepared him for his mission. 

In November, i860, Abraham Lincoln was elected 

President of the United States. The leaders of the South 

had declared that in the event of his election 

Secession of . ^ . , , . . ^ ^ . ^ 

Southern they would Withdraw irom the Union. Reces- 

sion feeling was growing. On December 
17, South Carolina met in a State convention that re- 
sulted in the secession of that State from the Union on 
December 20. Within two months Mississippi, Florida, 
Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas followed this 
precedent. On December 18, John J. Crittenden offered 
in the United States Senate certain compromise proposi- 
tions which, if adopted as amendments to the Federal con- 
stitution, he hoped would bring peace between the North 
and the South. But the propositions were voted down. 
The country was in no state of mind to listen to reason. 
Ten years had passed since Clay had carried in that same 
body his compromise measures of 1850. For ten years 
fuel had been added to the flame which was then burningj 
in the North and in the South. In 1850, it was possible to 
subdue it; in i860, it had grown beyond the power of man 
to quench. 

In January, 1861, a committee composed of one member 
from the representation in Congress of each of the Bor- 
„^ ^ ^ , der States met and framed other compromise 

Efforts toward _ _ ^ 

compromise resolutions which Crittenden, a member of the 

committee, accepted as substitutes for his own. 

But these proposed amendments met the same fate as their 

predecessors. In the meanwhile, at home, the Union men 



KENTUCKY'S POSITION OF NEUTRALITY 163 

upheld the hands of their senator. Conventions passed 
resolutions in favor of his efforts to avert the approaching 
catastrophe. Earnest speakers addressed the citizens in 
different parts of the State and implored them to be mod- 
erate in their actions. ''Secession," they said, ** means 
revolution, and revolution means war. And war with 
whom.? With our neighbors, our friends, our brothers!" 
In glowing language they urged the citizens nobly to face 
the wrongs which the South had suffered from the North, 
not failing to recognize, at the same time, the honor and 
the blessing of living in a great united country ; and to 
stand firm in the position they had taken for the Union. 

On the 17th day of January, 1861, the legislature met 
in called session. Governor Magoffin, in his message, set 
forth the condition of the country as it ap- ^he governor's 
peared to him at the time, and strongly recom- niessage 
mended the calling, forthwith, of a State convention to 
determine the future attitude of Kentucky toward the 
Federal government. The governor also recommended 
the arming of the State ; the appointment of commission- 
ers to act for Kentucky in a convention of Border Slave 
States to meet in the city of Baltimore at an early day ; 
and the presentation of the Crittenden compromise, or its 
equivalent, as an ultimatum. 

Many members of the Democratic party advocated call- 
ing a State convention. Notable among these was Vice 
President Breckinridge, who definitely ex- Democratic 
pressed his views on the subject in a letter to '^^^^^ 
the governor received a few days before the legislature 
convened. After giving a summary of the Crittenden 
compromise propositions, and mentioning other efforts 
which had been made to settle the political differences then 
dividing the country, he stated his firm conviction that no 



1 64 THE CIVIL WAR 

plan of adjustment would be adopted by Congress. He 
therefore gave his voice for a State convention. In his 
opinion, civil war was imminent unless it could be arrested 
by the prompt and energetic action of the several States in 
their sovereign capacity. He believed that it might be 
arrested if Kentucky and the other Border States should 
calmly and firmly present a united front against it. But if 
the war could not be avoided, he desired that Kentucky 
should be in a position to decide whether she would sup- 
port the Federal Union or the Southern cause. 

On the other hand, the Union men were distinctly 
opposed to calling a State convention. They argued that 
Union views ou such a Convention would not better the condi- 
the subject ^-Qj^ q£ Kentucky, that the legislature had full 
power to do everything necessary for the good of the 
Commonwealth. On one point only it could not act. It 
could not withdraw the State from the Union. It was 
only through the action of a State convention that such a 
step could be taken. They believed that if a convention 
were called, Kentucky might be led to secede. They were 
assured that most of the people of the State were attached 
to the Union ; but they knew that in times of high excite- 
ment men may be tempted to rash action, contrary to 
their sober judgment. 

In the legislature, this important matter was earnestly 

argued by both sides ; but finally the decision was reached 

that action at that time on political affairs was 

Legislature . 

against a State both unnecessary and mexpedient, and the 
convention legislature refused to call a convention that 
might take the State out of the Union. On February ii, 
the legislature adjourned until March 20. Little was 
done at this second session of sixteen days beyond further 
discussion of the state of the country. By special invita- 



KENTUCKY'S POSITION OF NEUTRALITY 



165 



tion, an address from the Union standpoint was delivered 
by John J. Crittenden, which was followed several days 
later by another from the Democratic point of view by 
John C. Breckinridge. Crittenden had just left the United 
States Senate. Breckinridge was his successor. 

On the 4th of February, a Peace Conference of twenty- 
one States assembled at Washington. Kentucky sent six 
delegates, — William O. Butler, Joshua F. Bell, Definite turn 
James B. Clay, James Guthrie, Charles S. '""^^^^^ 
Morehead, and Charles A. Wickliffe ; but nothing was 
accomplished by this 
meeting. All efforts 
toward compromise 
were of no avail. 
Matters were tending 
to a crisis. By this 
time seven States 
had seceded. On the 
same day that the 
Peace Conference 
opened in Washing- 
ton, delegates from 
six of the seceded 
States met at Mont- 
gomery, Alabama, to 
frame a government 
for The Confederate 
States of America. 
Jefferson Davis was 
elected President. On the 4th of March, Abraham Lin- 
coln was inaugurated President of the United States. 

On the 1 2th of April, 1861, the first gun in the war 
between the States was fired on Fort Sumter, in South 




Jefferson Ddvis 



1 66 THE CIVIL WAR 

Carolina. The garrison was under the command of 
Major Robert Anderson of the United States army, a 
Beginning native of Kentucky. On the 14th, the Federal 
of the war forces were compelled to abandon the fort. 
The President immediately made proclamation for troops. 
Kentucky was called on to furnish four regiments for the 
service of the government. Governor Magoffin promptly 
telegraphed the following reply to this demand: "In an- 
swer, I say, emphatically, Kentucky will furnish no troops 
for the wicked purpose of subduing her sister Southern 
States." Troops requested for the Confederate States 
were also refused by the governor. 

The Union men now nerved themselves for a mighty 

effort to hold Kentucky in a position of neutrality. On 

the 17th of April, Crittenden made a speech 

Efforts to hold ' . . 

Kentucky to a large audience at Lexington. He brought 

all the weight of his great intellect to bear on 
his appeal to the people to maintain an independent 
course. Kentucky, he showed, had done nothing to bring 
on this war ; she had done everything in her power to 
prevent it. Now that civil strife was begun, there was no 
reason why Kentucky should be forced to take part either 
with the North or the South. Let her stand true to the- 
Union alone and remain in her place as a peacemaker. 

The Union State Central Committee (formed January 8) 
followed up this line of argument in an address to the 
people. They earnestly urged that Kentucky should 
persevere in a position of neutrality, and they recom- 
mended that she should arm herself thoroughly, so that 
she might protect her soil from the invasion of either the 
Federal or Confederate forces. Similar Union meetings 
were held in various localities. Everywhere, it was evi- 
dent, the desire of the people was for neutrality. 



KENTUCKY'S POSITION OF NEUTRALITY 167 

Thus two facts are apparent to us, — that the people 
of Kentucky were ardently attached to the Union, and 
that they were distinctly opposed to war. 

-T-1 IT T Kentucky's at- 

They believed that the disagreement between titude toward 
the North and the South ought to be settled ^^^^^' 
in some peaceable way. They shuddered at the thought 
of civil war — war between friends and kindred. There- 
fore there was no probability, just at this time, that the 
State would decide to unite with the Federal government 
in resisting the secession of the Southern States. 

The extreme Unionists — those who were ready for war 
— were in the minority. But it was possible that Ken- 
tucky might decide to support the Southern cause. The 
Conservative Union men and the Democrats were agreed 
in believing that the Northern congressmen had no right 
to make laws against the slave property of the South. 
But the Democrats believed in the doctrine of State 
Rights, — that a State had the right to secede when it 
judged that the Federal government had acted unconsti- 
tutionally toward it. They dwelt upon the wrongs the 
South had suffered, and the subject appealed to the spirit 
of many of the gallant young men of the Commonwealth. 
The Kentuckian, from the days of his earliest conflict 
with Indians, had allowed no foe to overcome him. It 
was his impulse now to rush forward and take his stand 
beside his resisting brethren. It would not have been 
impossible, perhaps, by a few impassioned speeches on 
this line, to have turned the State into the Confederacy. 

In this state of feeling the legislature was again assem- 
bled in called session, May 6. At first it ap- Legislature 
peared as if the Southern Rights element was in [oria?iJ?u-'^' 
the majority. But there were in that body a traiity 
number of old tried Whigs, — Union men now, — who braced 



1 68 THE CIVIL WAR 

themselves to exert every effort to keep their State from 
the horrors of this war, and to hold her true to the Union. 
Their strength was as the strength of many because they 
were convinced that their purpose was righteous. More- 
over, they were upheld by the will of the people. Petitions 
poured in from the women of the State, imploring the 
legislators to " guard them from the direful calamity of 
civil war." Furthermore, several members who had been 
elected as Democrats before this crisis of war had come, 
now went over to the aid of the Union men. Notably 
among these was Richard T. Jacob, later colonel of the 
Federal army, and lieutenant governor of the State. And 
so it came about that this legislature decided the fate of 
the State, and perhaps of the nation, by voting in favor 
of mediatorial neutrality. 

Kentucky's position of mediatorial neutrality was pri- 
marily a decision for the Union. It did not mean that the 
Federal sfovernment had no rio^ht to raise 

Meaning of *^ _ ^ 

mediatorial troops for its defense on her soil. It rather 
indicated such a right, and was simply a re- 
quest to the Federal government for a postponement of 
that constitutional right, in order that an effort might be 
made on her part to try to win back the seceded States 
to the Union and to secure peace. ^ But if peace were im- 
possible, and the war should continue, Kentucky was deter- 
mined to stand by the Union, even to her temporary disad- 
vantage in the possible destruction of her slave property. 
What was gained by this position was delay. In that 
hour of impassioned action every moment of rational 
inaction was of vital importance. 

1 Synopsis of House Resolutions in exposition of the position of the leg- 
islature of i86i. Offered by the member from Oldham, Richard T. Jacob, 
and accepted by the legislature, September i, i86i. 



KENTUCKY'S POSITION OF NEUTRALITY 169 

The Union victory was attained by only one vote in the 
House and a meager majority in the Senate ; but none 
the less was it regarded by the Conservatives 

, . . Union victory 

as a trmmph which would result m immeas- 
urable good. In the list of those who accomplished it are 
found the names of men who are known to the nation. 
There are R. A. Buckner, Speaker of the House, C. F. 
Burnam, Lovell H. Rousseau, James Speed, Joseph R. 
Underwood, Nathaniel Wolfe, and others too numerous to 
mention. Old men who were present in that legislature 
tell us to-day of the deep earnestness of the discussion 
through which that decision was reached. 

Throughout this study we have had occasion to notice 
the sober dignity with which Kentucky has met every 
serious issue in her history ; and we have also observed 
the important work she has done for the nation. Let us 
especially recall the period of her severest trial, — her 
tedious struggle for independence from Virginia, — and 
we shall find that she decided her course of action in 
this present vital hour of the nation's life in harmony 
with that judgment which controlled her in the former 
period. 

The governor issued a proclamation setting forth the 
fact of Kentucky's neutrality, and likewise warning and 
forbidding any State, whether of the United The governor's 
States or of the Confederate States, to enter or P'-ociamation 
occupy Kentucky with armed forces. The legislature also 
directed that the State should be armed for her own pro- 
tection. The necessary funds were immediately raised, 
and arms and ammunition were procured for the State 
Guards and the Home Guards; and it was especially pro- 
vided that neither the arms nor the militia were to be 
used against either the United States or the Confederate 



I/O THE CIVIL WAR 

States, but solely for the defense of the State of Kentucky' 
The governor appointed Simon Bolivar Buckner inspector 
general, Scott Brown adjutant general, and M. D. West 
quartermaster general. 

The President called a special session of Congress for 
July 4, 1 86 1. The election thus made necessary is de- 
unionmen scribcd by onc of the Union workers of that 
elected time as follows : " And now the contest 

opened before the people of Kentucky, and the Union 
men went boldly and confidently into the fray. . . . All 
eyes were at once turned to Mr. Crittenden, and his ser- 
vices were demanded in that Congress. . . . The noble 
old man heard the call and did not hesitate for a moment. 
. . . Animated by intense patriotism and the stirring 
scenes around him, he moved through the district with all 
the vigor and spirit of a young man, unbent by age, his 
manly form erect, his voice clear and thrilling, his eye 
blazing with all the fervor which the high responsibility of 
his position inspired. Crowds flocked to listen to him ; 
the people everywhere responded to his appeal. . . . He 
was elected by a large majority. Many others of the best 
men of the State were sent to Congress.^ The most trusted 
men were selected for the legislature, and secession was no 
longer thought of in Kentucky. 

" No one doubts that had Mr. Crittenden faltered at all, 
or had he pursued any other course than that which he did 
Crittenden's pursuc, Kentucky would have been lost to the 
influence Union. His personal influence in the late legis- 

lature had contributed much to prevent injudicious action. 

^ The men selected to represent the State in this Congress were Henry C 
Burnett, James S. Jackson, Henry Grider, Aaron Harding, Charles A. Wick- 
liffe, George W. Dunlap, Robert Mallory, John J. Crittenden, William H. 
Wadsworth, and John W. Menzies. 



KENTUCKY'S POSITION OF NEUTRALITY 



71 



His eloquence and his great popularity secured the tri- 
umph of the Union men in his district; and the great 
confidence the whole State reposed in him kept the State 
in the Union. Should Kentucky at that critical moment 
have cast her destiny with the South, who can calculate 
what might have been the result ? " ^ 



Both Lincoln and Davis born in Ken- 
tucky. 

Lincoln elected President of the 
United States, i860. 

His election objectionable to the 
South. 

South Carolina and six other States 
secede. 

Crittenden's compromise resolutions 
rejected by United States Senate. 

Border States' compromise resolu- 
tions also rejected. 

Crittenden's efforts for peace appre- 
ciated at home. 

Speakers urge the people to be mod- 
erate in action. 

The legislature meets in called ses- 
sion. 

The governor's message. 

He recommends calling a State con- 
vention. 

Democrats generally desire this step. 

Views of Vice President Breckin- 
ridge on the subject. 

He earnestly advocates holding such 
a convention. 

It would enable the State to decide 
her course toward the war. 

Union party strongly oppose calling 
a State convention. 



RECAPITULATION 

They fear the State might thus be led 
to secede. 

Legislature decides not to hold a 
State convention. 

Legislature addressed on the condi- 
tion of the country. 

J. J. Crittenden speaks from the 
Union point of view. 

J. C. Breckinridge speaks from the 
Democratic point of view. 

Peace conference at Washington ac- 
complishes nothing. 

The crisis approaching. 

The Confederate States of America 
formed. 

Jefferson Davis chosen President. 

Lincoln inaugurated President of the 
United States. 

Confederates fire upon Fort Sumter, 
South CaroHna. 

Major Robert Anderson, U.S.A., in 
command. 

Federals obliged to abandon the 
fort. 

President Lincoln makes proclama- 
tion for troops. 

Confederate States also request 
troops. 

Governor Magoffin declines both re- 
quests. 



1 W. B. Kinkead in an article on John J. Crittenden in the A^ew York Sun 



172 



THE CIVIL WAR 



Union men strive to hold Kentucky 
neutral for a time. 

Crittenden recommends an indepen- 
dent course. 

He shows that Kentucky had no part 
in bringing on the war. 

He urges the people not to rush into 
the contest, but to remain peace- 
makers, true to the Union. 

Union meetings held in various local- 
ities. 

All recommend the same course. 

Kentucky much attached to the 
Union. 

Generally opposed to war. 

Does not intend just yet to enter the 
war on the Federal side. 

More chance of her supporting the 
Confederate cause. 

It appeals to the sympathy of the 
young men of the State. 

Conservative Union men and Demo- 
crats widely differ on one point. 



Democrats believe that a State has 
a right to secede. 

Second called session of legisla- 
ture. 

Southern Rights element in the ma- 
jority at first. 

Conservative Union men make a 
strong fight. 

Several Democrats come to their 
aid. 

Mediatorial neutrality carried. 

This was a plea to the Federal gov- 
ernment to postpone raising troops 
in the State while further efforts 
for peace were made. 

Above all it meant a decision for the 
Union. 

The State armed for her own protec- 
tion. 

Special election of Congressmen 
held. 

Crittenden helps to secure the 
Union victory. 



CHAPTER XVI 



THE INVASION OF KENTUCKY, JULY 1861-APRIL 1862 



Had the other States followed Kentucky's example of 
forbearance, there would have been no war. But perhaps 
war was necessary. Perhaps it was the only Beginning of 
means by which the abolition of slavery could *^^ tragedy 
be accomplished. Of course it was impossible for Ken- 
tucky to make peace, and equally im- 
possible for her to remain apart from 
the combat. 

Outside the borders of the State, at 
Camp Clay opposite Newport, and 
Camp Joe Holt opposite Louisville, 
Federal regiments were being recruited, 
and thither in the summer of 1 861 
hastened many Unionists of the State. 
Many dissatisfied Secessionists assem- 
bled at Camp Boone near Clarksville, 
Tennessee, where Confederate troops 
were being enlisted. And thus began 
the tragedy in Kentucky ! Most of the 
other States went solidly with one side 
or the other ; but Kentucky was divided 
against herself ! Fathers differed from sons, and went 
forth to fight against them. Brothers parted from brothers, 




Union Soldier 



friends from friends. 



Ah, the awful anguish of it all I 
»73 



174 



THE CIVIL WAR 



On the soil of Kentucky itself Federal forces were 
organized at Camp Dick Robinson, in Garrard County, by 
Federal and General William Nelson. General Humphrey 
fTcefoSnized Marshall had a recruiting camp in Owen 
in Kentucky County, thirty miles from the capital, where 
Confederate forces were organized. In other parts of the 
State, Confederate troops were 
raised by Colonel Blanton Dun- 
can. And still, the State's neutral 
position was not yet officially 
abandoned. 

On the 20th of May, 1861, the 
definite Confederate government 
was organized at Rich- Kentucky is 
mond, Virginia. In ^"^°° 
that State, on the 21st of July, the 
first great battle of the war was 
fought along the banks of Bull 
Run stream, not far from Manassas 
Junction. The result was defeat 
to the Federals, and a general rout 
and flight of their forces. Hope 
was inspired in the hearts of the Confederates ; but the 
Federals fought with renewed- energy. Each side watched 
Kentucky with interest. The August elections came off, 
and the State voted overwhelmingly in favor of the 
Unionists. Seventy-six Union to twenty-four State Rights 
members were elected to the House ; twenty-seven to 
eleven, to the Senate. The newly elected legislature as- 
sembled September 2, 1861. 

The day following, by an almost simultaneous move 
upon Kentucky, the State was invaded by Confederate 
forces at two different points. Major General Leonidas 




Confederate Soldier 



THE INVASION OF KENTUCKY 



175 



Polk, of Tennessee, occupied and fortified a strong posi- 
tion at Hickman and Columbus, in the southwest, and 
General Zollicoffer established troops near 
Cumberland Gap, in the southeast. Where- invadeKei? 
upon, on the 5th, a Federal army of several ^"^^^ 
thousand strong, under an order from Brigadier General 
U. S. Grant, entered Kentucky and took its position at 
Paducah. The legislature promptly ordered that the flag 
of the United States be hoisted on the capitol, to proclaim 
Kentucky's Union attitude. 

General Polk notified Governor Magoffin that he would 
withdraw his troops provided the Union troops were 
simultaneously withdrawn; and offered the Legislature 
further guarantee that Confederate trooos orders with- 

... , ^ , ^ ^ drawal of Con- 

should remam out of the State provided Fed- federates 
eral troops should not be allowed to enter or occupy any 
point in Kentucky in the future. Now the Union people 
disapproved of the condition thus laid down by General 
Polk.i On the nth, the legislature passed resolutions to 
the effect that Kentucky expected the Confederate troops 
to withdraw from her soil unconditionally. The governor, 
who was opposed to the Union policy, and in sympathy 
with the Confederacy, vetoed the resolution, but it was 
passed immediately over his veto. 

As the Confederate forces refused to comply with this 
order, on September 18, the State, in her General Assem- 
bly, abandoned the neutrality position, and de- 
clared herself an active supporter of the Federal Stion^^ 
government. Resolutions were introduced and ^^^°^°°^^ 
carried: (i) to request General Robert Anderson, who 
had already been appointed commander of the Department 

^ See p. 168, the meaning of mediatorial neutrality. 



176 



THE CIVIL WAR 




of the Cumberland, which inckided Kentucky, to take 
instant command, with authority to call out the volunteer 

force of the Common- 
wealth for the purpose 
of expelling the in- 
vaders from the soil ; 
(2) to protect all 
peaceable citizens 
while this necessary 
duty was being per- 
formed ; (3) to request 
the governor to give all 
the aid in his power 
to accomplish this end, 
and to call out the 
militia force of the 
State under his con- 
trol, and place it under 
the command of Gen- 
eral Thomas L. Crittenden ; (4) to invoke the patriotism 
and aid of every Kentuckian for the defense of the Com- 
monwealth. Again the governor used his right of veto, 
and again the legislature disregarded his act. Several days 
later, a bill was passed, — notwithstanding the usual veto, 
— directing the governor to call out not less than forty 
thousand Kentuckians to be placed under the authority 
of the commanding general, to aid in expelling the in- 
vaders. 

The State Guard, who had been armed and equipped by 
the State for her own use and protection, laid down their 
The state arms in some instances, and in others carried 

Guard them with them, and went almost in a body 

into the ranks of the Confederacy, whither their principles 



Robert Anderson 



THE INVASION OF KENTUCKY 



177 




or sympathy led them. On September 18, their leader, 
Brigadier General Simon B. Buckner, was ordered to invade 
Kentucky and to fortify 
a central camp at Bowl- 
ing Green. This point 
became, for a time, the 
headquarters of the Con- 
federate Army of the 
West, then placed under 
the command of Gen- 
eral Albert Sidney John- 
ston, a Kentuckian by 
birth. 

As early as July, Gen- 
eral Lloyd Tilghman, a 
resident of Paducah, had 
resigned his position in 
the State Guard, and at 
the head of the third 

Kentucky regiment of infantry, had joined the Confeder- 
ate army. Paducah was intensely Southern, and most 
of the young men of the city, previously members of the 
State Guard, went with Tilghman. From the force of the 
State Guard, also, went John Hunt Morgan, then captain 
of the Lexington Rifles, to become the famous Kentucky 
cavalry raider, — General Morgan of the Confederacy. By 
some daring stratagem, he succeeded in evading the Fed- 
eral authorities, and leading most of his company, all car- 
rying their arms with them, he reached Bowling Green 
a few days after General Buckner had taken his station 
there. 

On the contrary, the Home Guards were nearly all sup- 
porters of the Federal government. But they were a 

KENT. HIST. — 12 



Thomas L. Crittenden 



178 



THE CIVIL WAR 



The Home 
Guard 



body of undisciplined troops who were not always wise 
in their conduct. Arrests of innocent persons were fre- 
quently made by them, and thereby wrath was 
awakened among the Southern sympathizers 
against the Union policy the State had adopted. 

The legislature heartily condemned all such unjustifiable 
arrests, and General Anderson, who was always fair as 
well as brave, issued a proclamation of protection to the 
people. It was to the effect that no Kentuckian should 
be arrested unless he took part, either by action or speech, 

against the authorities of the 
general or State government, 
held correspondence with, or 
gave aid or assistance to, the 
enemy. 

Under a construction of 
this order of the command- 
ing^ general, a „ 

^ ^ ' Prominent 

number of arrests confederates 

- - arrested 

were made of 
men who, by their position, 
were able to give efficient aid 
to the Confederate cause. 
James B. Clay was arrested 
for this reason, as were also 
Reuben T. Durrett, editor of the Louisville Courier, and 
ex-Governor Charles S. Morehead, who were sent to politi- 
cal prisons in the East. The judge of Harrison County 
and other officers of that court were arrested and sent to 
the United States barracks at Newport. Every effort 
was put forth to constrain the citizens to submit to the 
Union pojicy which the State had adopted. 

The State was being rapidly divested of her South- 




William Preston 



THE INVASION OF KENTUCKY 



179 



ern sympathizers among the soldiers. During the last 
week of September, nearly one thousand Kentuckians 
passed into Virginia, to join the Southern confederate 
forces. John C. Breckinridge left his seat in ^®^^^'' 
the United States Senate to become brigadier general 
in the Confederate army. Other notable leaders of 
Confederate volunteers were Roger W. Hanson, Ben 
Hardin Helm, George W. Johnson, Humphrey Mar- 
shall, William Preston, and 
John S. Williams. 

Meanwhile the State was 
gathering loyal soldiers for 
the Federal service. It is 
difficult to estimate the exact 
numbers furnished to the Con- 
federate side ; but it may be 
generally stated that about 
three times as many of the 
inhabitants of the Common- 
wealth went into 
the Federal army 
as into the Confederate. 

Nevertheless, many mothers and aged fathers who re- 
mained at home awaited in anguish and suspense the 
tidings from the opposing armies, each of which contained 
dearly loved members of their divided families. 

The departure of the Confederates left vacant a number 
of State offices. John W. Finnel, an efficient Union mem- 
ber of the legislature, was appointed adjutant important 
general, in the place of Scott Brown, and official changes 
WilHam A. Dudley quartermaster general, in the place of 
M. D. West, who had followed his associate into the 
Southern army. Bland Ballard was appointed United 



Divided 
households 




Bland Ballard 



t8o 



THE CIVIL WAR 



States district judge, that honorable position having been 
vacated by its holder, Thomas B. Monroe. John C. 
Breckinridge was deprived of his seat in the United States 
Senate, and Garrett Davis was chosen by the legislature 
to succeed him. 

Previous to the 21st of October, only insignificant skir- 
mishes had taken place on Kentucky soil ; but on that day 
First battles in occurred quite a desperate encounter at Camp 
Kentucky ^j]^ Q^^^ ^^ ^^iQ Rockcastlc hills. The Fed- 

eral troops were commanded by Colonel T. T. Garrard; 

the Confederate, by Brig- 
adier General Zollicoffer. 
The Confederates were out- 
numbered, and in spite of 
the efforts of their able 
commander, were forced to 
retreat. Shortly afterward, 
not far away, at Ivy Moun- 
tain, in Pike County, a sim- 
ilar victory was gained by 
Federal troops under Gen- 
eral William Nelson. 

On the 1 8th of Novem- 
ber, there occurred a unique 
event. Delegates, elected 
by the dissatisfied minority 
of the State, assembled at Russellville, in Logan County, 
confed rate ^^^ formed what they called a provisional 
government of government for Kentucky. Georo:e W. John- 
Kentucky 1 ? n r 
son was chosen governor, and a lull corps 01 

State officials was also elected. Bowling Green was se- 
lected as the new seat of government. Henry C. Burnett, 
sometime representative in the United States Congress, 




William Nelson 



THE INVASION OF KENTUCKY i8l 

William Preston, and William E. Simms were sent as del- 
egates to Richmond, Virginia, and on the loth of December, 
the government there established went through the form 
of admitting Kentucky into the Confederate States. This 
little episode had small effect, however, upon the even 
tenor of Kentucky's real administration. Soon the princi- 
pal actors in it themselves left their visionary posts, to 
enter into the serious events of Southern warfare. 

On November 13, Brigadier General Don Carlos Buell 
succeeded to the command of the department which in- 
cluded Kentucky. Early the following month, Bueii 
he had organized at Louisville for the Union ^^ command 
army about sixty thousand soldiers. The Confederates 
held a long military line from Cumber- 
land Gap into Arkansas and Missouri. 
They had strong fortifications on the 
Cumberland, Tennessee, and Missis- 
sippi rivers. They had been greatly 
discouraged by Kentucky's unwavering 
efforts for the Union ; but they still 
hoped to gain possession of the State. ' 

On January 19, 1862, General George ^°" ^''''°' ^"'" 

B. Crittenden, commanding a Confederate force of about 
five thousand infantry, came upon the advancing Federal 
army, commanded by Maior General Georo^e 

•' -^ ^ ^ Significant 

H. Thomas, under whom were Colonels Speed Federal victory 
Smith Fry and Frank L. Wolford, at Mill ^^^'^^^^^^^ 
Springs, in Pulaski County. The Confederate attack was 
led by General Zollicoffer, who was killed after a few 
hours' hard fighting. The Federal force, which at the out- 
set was somewhat less than that of the enemy, was about 
this time reenforced. The Confederates were thrown into 
confusion and driven to retreat into Tennessee. This was 




1 82 



THE CIVIL WAR 



the first of the important victories which led to the evacua- 
tion of the State. 

Another discouraging defeat to the Confederates was 

soon to follow. On the 6th of February, General Lloyd 

Tilsrhman, in command of the Confederate 

Fall of Forts ^ ' 

Henry and Fort Henry, on the Tennessee River, was 

compelled to surrender to General Grant. On 

the 1 2th of the month, General Grant began his celebrated 

assault on Fort Donel- 
son, on the south- 
'^' ■ west bank of the 

Cumberland 
^ -*^'^'^'' River. The 

Confederate 
troops were 
commanded by 
Generals John 
Floyd, Gideon J. 
Pillow, and Simon B. Buck- 
ner. Two Kentucky regiments 
were engaged on each side: Colonel 
John H. McHenry's and Colonel James 
M. Shackleford's, on the Federal; Colonel Roger W. Han- 
son's and Colonel H. B. Lyon's, on the Confederate. The 
terrible carnage lasted nearly five days, during bitterly 
cold weather, rain, and sleet. On the night of the 15th, 
Generals Floyd and Pillow escaped with portions of their 
brigades. On the i6th. General Buckner proposed terms 
of capitulation, but General Grant demanded and obtained 
an unconditional surrender. 

On the 14th, before the fate of Donelson was definitely 
decided, the Confederates abandoned Bowling Green. 
On the 27th, Columbus was also evacuated. Federal troops 




Bombardment of Fort 
Henry 



THE INVASION OF KENTUCKY 



183 




Lloyd Tilghman 



under the chief command of 

General Buell — 114,000 men — 

were meanwhile 

Kentucky evac- 
uated by the pressing southward. 
Confederates ^^ ^, ^,, r -r? i, 

On the 25th of Feb- 
ruary, they took possession of 
Nashville, Tennessee. 

The retreating Confederates 
passed through Nashville be- 
fore the advance of the Fed- 
erals. General Albert Sidney 
Johnston reorganized his army 
at Murfreesboro, and having 
been reenforced 
Battle ofShiioh ^y Q^n^,^i Beaure- 

gard, again moved southward 

to Corinth, Mississippi. General Grant pushed his forces 
in a parallel direction and established his camp at 
Pittsburg Landing, near Shiloh Church, on the Tennes- 
see River. The engagement 
which occurred there on the 
morning of the 6th of April, 
although desired by the Union 
army, was hastened by the wis- 
dom of the Confederate com- 
mander. The battle of Shiloh 
was one of the most terrible in 
the war. The fighting contin- 
ued for two days. At the close 
of the first day the Federals 
were driven in disorder to the 
river, and it seemed as though 

Albert Sidney Johnston victory WCrC with the Coufcdcr- 




1 84 



THE CIVIL WAR 



ates, although their commander, General Johnston, had 
fallen with a mortal wound. But in the night General 
Grant was reenforced by General Buell with twenty thou- 
sand men. After a rushing march of twenty-five miles, 




Attack on Fort Donelson 



General Buell reached the field in time to turn the victory 
to the Federals. But the loss of life was very great, and 
the Kentucky regiments suffered more than their pro- 
portion. 



RECAPITULATION 



Kentucky's futile efforts for peace. 
It was impossible for her to remain 

apart from the war. 
Kentucky Federals and Confederates 

recruited outside the State. 
Kentucky's tragic situation. 



Federals and Confederates organized 
within the State. 

The neutrality position not yet aban- 
doned. 

Confederate victory in the battle of 
Bull Run. 



THE INVASION OF KENTUCKY 



185 



Conservative Union party carries the 

State elections of 1861. 
The newly elected legislature assem- 
bles September 2. 
Confederates invade the State on the 
Jd. 

General Polk establishes troops in 
the southwest; General ZoUicofifer, 
in the southeast. 
Legislature orders withdrawal of the 

Confederates. 
General Polk refuses unless Federal 

troops are also withdrawn. 
Legislature demands an uncondi- 
tional withdrawal. 
Neutrality abandoned, September 18. 
Kentucky declares herself actively for 

the Union. 
Robert Anderson appointed comman- 
der of Kentucky department of war. 
T. L. Crittenden, commander of Ken- 
tucky militia. 
Other important resolutions passed by 

the legislature. 
State Guard joins the Confederate 

army. 
Young men from Paducah follow 

General Lloyd Tilghman. 
General S. B. Buckner invades Ken- 
tucky, September 18. 
Bowling Green the Confederate head- 
quarters for a time. 
The Confederate general John Hunt 

Morgan. 
The Home Guard almost entirely 

Union. 
A body of undisciplined troops. 
Cause trouble by making unlawful ar- 
rests. 



Prominent Confederates arrested. 
Efforts to constrain the citizens to 

submit to the Union policy. 
Many Kentuckians join the Confed- 
erate army. 
Notable Confederate leaders. 
About three times as many join the 

Federal army. 
The households of the State are di- 
vided. 
A number of civil offices left vacant 

by Confederates. 
First battles in Kentucky. 
Federal victories at Camp Wild Cat 

and Ivy Mountain. 
Confederates meet at Russellville, Lo- 
gan County. 
Frame a provisional government for 

Kentucky. 
George W. Johnson chosen their gov- 
ernor. 
Don Carlos Buell commander of 

Kentucky Department. 
Sixty thousand Federal troops organ- 
ized at Louisville. 
Battle of Mill Springs, Pulaski 

County. 
Federals gain a significant victory. 
Fall of Confederate Forts Henry and 

Donelson. 
Kentucky evacuated. 
One hundred and fourteen thousand 
Federal troops pressing south- 
ward. 
Nashville taken possession of. 
Another Federal victory in the battle 

of Shiloh. 
General Buell's part in the battle. 



CHAPTER XVII 

THE SECOND INVASION OF KENTUCKY, APRIL-DEC, 1862 

The Conservative Union people of Kentucky loved the 
Union and the constitution above all property considera- 
tions, sacrificinsT for it kindred and ties of 

Congress ^ 

actively favors Sympathy, and life itself. Very many of them 

abolition , , , ,1 t j 

were large slave owners, and they relied upon 
the protection which the constitution of the United States 
gave to their slave property. Many who regretted the 
existence of such property, as well as those who approved 
it, were agreed in maintaining that the government had no 
right to interfere with it. During all the early months of 
that time of trial they clung — with a trust that refused to 
see the tendency of the issue — to the belief that the 
government did not intend to invade the rights of the 
South; that its sole object was to suppress the rebellion, 
and then to restore the Union and the constitution. But 
all the while events were steadily pressing towards the 
abolition of slavery. In April, 1862, the first step in this 
direction was taken by Congress abolishing slavery in the 
District of Columbia. The venerable John J. Crittenden 
made one of his last great efforts to defeat this measure, 
as did other of the statesmen of Kentucky, — Aaron Hard- 
ing and William Henry Wadsworth, in the House of 
Representatives, and Garrett Davis in the Senate. 

An antagonism was therefore spreading throughout 
186 



THE SECOND INVASION OF KENTUCKY 



187 



the State to the Federal authorities at Washington. This 
was greatly increased by the military policy which was 
now adopted. On June i, 1862, Kentucky 
was placed under martial law. Brigadier fdve?sf to this 
General Jeremiah Tilford Boyle was made "''"'■'" 
military commandant. Provost marshals were appointed 
in every county. Any one suspected of aiding or abetting 
the Confederacy was ar- 
rested and compelled to 
subscribe to an oath of 
allegiance to the gov- 
ernment of the United 
States before he was 
discharged. The printed 
formula of the oath 
stated that its violation 
was death. 

For some time the lives 
and property of loyal 
citizens had been dis- 
turbed by lawless bands 
of men called guerril- 
las. The guerrillas were 
mostly soldiers who had 
broken away from the 
ranks of the Confederacy, — wild, reckless men, who had 
been made inhuman by some injury they or Martial law 
their families had suffered from Federal o«e°sive 
soldiers or authorities. They banded themselves together 
and dashed through the country, wreaking their vengeance 
upon the innocent victims in the Commonwealth. Now 
the order went forth that whenever such depredations 
should hereafter occur, the Confederate sympathizers in 




Jeremiah T. Beyle 



iS8 



THE CIVIL WAR 




the neighborhood where the offenses were committed 
should be held responsible and made to pay the damages. 
Although these raids were exceedingly harassing, the 
measures employed for their suppression were most 
objectionable to the Kentuckians generally. However, 

General Boyle endeavored to 
execute the severe orders of 
the secretary of war with as 
much leniency as possible. 
Meanwhile, an excitement 
of a very practical nature had 
been created in „ 

Morgan, the 
the State. Exag- confederate 
, T , cavalry raider 

gerated reports 
were spreading wildly, con- 
cerning General John Hunt 
Morgan, who with his Con- 
federate cavalry had entered 
Monroe County early in July on his first Kentucky raid. 
This daring leader of a few hundred men did most effective 
service to the Confederate cause. The methods he em- 
ployed required quick wits and coolness of action. 

At Tompkinsville he defeated two hundred and fifty 
Federal cavalry, and then moved northward, following the 
line of the Louisville and Nashville railroad, through Glas- 
gow, to Bear Wallow. There an expert operator on his 
staff tapped the telegraph wire and, on the ground that all 
things are fair in war, sent false dispatches concerning 
Morgan's numbers and movements, and also received in- 
formation in regard to the Federal plans. The telegraph 
was frequently employed in this manner, and the Federal 
officers were much mystified and alarmed. 

Along the line of Morgan's march, railroads were de- 



John Hunt Morgan 



THE SECOND INVASION OF KENTUCKY 189 

stroyed, supply trains were captured, and horses were 
seized for the use of the Confederacy. At Cynthiana, 
quite a severe contest occurred. A Federal force of nearly 
five hundred, under Colonel John J. Landrum, was captured, 
after a resistance of nearly two hours. Being pursued by 
General Green Clay Smith and Colonel Frank L. Wolford, 
with a Federal force somewhat superior in numbers to his 
own, Morgan hastened southward, capturing several towns 
on his way, and destroying government stores. He trav- 
eled over one thousand miles in twenty-four days, fought 
repeatedly, and lost only about ninety of his men. 

It is noteworthy that in this time of intense excitement 
a change in the highest civil office of the Commonwealth 
was made in an altogether dispassionate and 
rather unique manner. The governor, a fn «iTsta?e^^ 
Southern sympathizer, had been out of accord ^^"^^^^st^^tion 
with the rest of the administration. He indicated his 
desire to resign, provided his successor should be agreeable 
to him. The lieutenant governor, Linn Boyd, having died, 
the president of the Senate, John F. Fisk (to whom the 
governor was inimical) would have become governor upon 
the vacation of the office. That gentleman, perceiving the 
situation, consented to resign his position. James F. Rob- 
inson, a harmonizing member of the Union element, was 
elected speaker. Governor Magoffin resigned, and Speaker 
Robinson became acting governor. Whereupon, the Hon- 
orable John F. Fisk was reelected to his formcF office. 

Morgan's bold ride through the State was but a prepara- 
tion for the military disturbance which was now anticipated. 
Since the battle of Shiloh there had been 
organizing at Chattanooga a force of more than KirtT smith's 
forty thousand Confederates, under the chief '''''^^'°'' 
command of General Braxton Bragg, for the invasion of 



190 THE CIVIL WAR 

Kentucky, and especially for the capture of Louisville and 
Cincinnati. General Buell, the department commander, 
did not anticipate this move. He held his troops between 
Murfreesboro and Nashville, expecting an attack in central 
Tennessee. During the last week in August, General E. 
Kirby Smith, with about one third of this Confederate 
army, entered Kentucky at Big Creek Gap and moved on 
towards Richmond, where the only organized force of the 
State was stationed, — two brigades of seven or eight thou- 
sand, mainly undisciplined troops from Ohio and Indiana, 
under the command of General William Nelson. 

Skirmishing began on the 29th between the advance of 
both armies. General Nelson was absent from head- 
Battie of Rich- quarters. General Manson of Indiana (the 
mond officer next in command), believing he should 

encounter only one of the raiding parties then numerous 
in the State, pushed on the next morning with his one 
brigade and gave attack to the whole of General Smith's 
army. The Federals held their own for several hours, but 
were finally overcome and driven back in wild confusion 
towards Richmond. 

After ^ furious ride, General Nelson reached the scene 
of disorder. Raging and desperate, he vainly tried to 
rally his forces. One of his own officers called to his 
men to scatter and run, and the infuriated Nelson drew 
his sword and cut him to the ground. But he had arrived 
too late. The victorious Confederates moved on to Lex- 
ington, where several days later they were joined by 
Morgan's Confederate cavalry. 

On Sunday night the legislature met and adjourned to 
Louisville (according to a provision which had been 
passed for such an emergency), carrying the archives 
of the State thither for protection. 



THE SECOND INVASION OF KENTUCKY 



191 



While Kirby Smith impatiently awaited the orders of 
General Bragg, that officer, with the main army, was 
makins: his slow march into Kentucky. Bv 

. . •' ■' Bragg and 

way of misleading Buell, Bragg first moved Bueirs contest 
westward to Nashville, and when he reached ^^ ^° "^ ^ 
Glasgow, in Barren County, he had lost at least ten days. 
Sixteen more days were consumed in a march to Lexing- 
ton. Meanwhile Buell had 
outreached him, and with 
an army now numbering 
one hundred thousand 
men, had entered Louis- 
ville on September 25. 
The conditions of the two 
-armies were reversed. The 
Federals had a most de- 
cided advantage. Western 
troops had hastened to the 
defense of Cincinnati. The 
Federal General Lew Wal- 
lace was in command. All 
chance of the Confederates 
capturing that city and Louisville was lost. 

On October i, Buell moved out of Louisville to give 
attack to the Confederates. A detachment was sent 
toward Frankfort, while the main army followed a south- 
eastward course. Instead of vigorously grasping the situ- 
ation, Bragg tarried at the capital, where the Confederates 
went through the vain ceremony of inaugurating Richard 
Hawes provisional governor of Kentucky, in the place of 
George W. Johnson, who had fallen at Shiloh. The act 
was hardly completed when the advance guard of Buell's 
army reached the town. Governor Hawes hastened to 




Braxlon Bragg 



192 THE CIVIL WAR 

Lexington, and the provisional government of Kentucky 
vanished, never to reappear. 

The two armies came together near Perryville, in Boyle 
County, on October 8. There was fought one of the 
Battle of severest contests of the war : a battle terrible 

Perryville -^^ j^^^ ^£ valuable livcs on both sides, and 

yet undecisive in result. Of the twenty-five thousand 
Federals and fifteen thousand Confederates engaged in it, 
at least seven thousand fell in the few hours the fighting 
continued between noon and twilight. The immediate 
commander of the Federal force was Major General 
Alexander McCook ; of the Confederate, Major General 
William J. Hardee. Nearly half of the Confederate army 
was at Frankfort, while the Federals had heavy reenforce- 
ments (Major General Thomas L. Crittenden's corps) 
within summoning distance. The battle was brought on 
through a misunderstanding on the part of the Confed- 
erates, who believed they were attacking only a detach- 
ment of the Federal force. General Buell, who expected 
an engagement the next day, was some distance away and 
was not informed of what was taking place before the 
battle was half over. And then, through a misunderstand- 
ing on his part of the true situation, — supposing Bragg's 
entire army was engaged, — he determined not to press 
the action further until the morning. 

But on the morrow Bragg had withdrawn his forces and 
begun his retreat from Kentucky. At Harrodsburg he 
Failure of was joined by General Smith's corps. With 

to secure^^^^ wisc caution, Buell refrained from bringing on 
Kentucky ^^ engagement with the Confederates. Only 

skirmishes took place. No other definite battle occurred; 
and Bragg escaped from the State, having made a failure 
of his whole campaign. After this, fighting on a large 



THE SECOND INVASION OF KENTUCKY 



193 



scale was practically ended in Kentucky. Again and 
again Morgan's ''wild riders" spread terror throughout 
the State, and repeated skirmishes occurred in various 
localities ; but no other Confederate effort was made to 
secure Kentuckv. 




Morgans Wild Riders 

The soldiers of Kentucky were now to be engaged in 
many of the great battles of the South. They took part 
at^ Murfreesboro, Chickamauga, Missionary The soldiers of 
Ridge, Lookout Mountain, Kenesaw Mountain, Kentucky 
Vicksburg, etc. ; and everywhere, on both sides, they 
were conspicuous for their courage and power of endur- 
ance.^ They were all volunteers, and belonged to the best 
families of the Commonwealth, — strong, tall men, un- 

KENT. HIST. — 13 



194 



THE CIVIL WAR 



equaled in size by any other troops of the United States, 
with the exception of those of Tennessee. 

The Confederate army continued to receive recruits 
from Kentucky until the end of the war. Though it is 
impossible to state precisely the number given to that 
service, it has been fairly estimated as over forty thousand. 
It is possible to be more exact in regard to the Federal 
numbers. According to the estimates of the adjutant 
generals, before the close of the war the State had given 
to the Federal service upwards of one hundred thousand 
white men, — nearly one tenth of the entire population. 
Besides this, eleven thousand negroes were enlisted for 
the United States army. 

RECAPITULATION 



Love of Kentucky Conservatives for 
the Union. 

Their trust that the constitution 
would be restored after the war. 

Belief that the government did not 
intend to destroy the institutions of 
the South. 

The first step in the revolution taken. 

Slavery abolished in the District of 
Columbia by Congress. 

Kentucky statesmen vainly try to de- 
feat the measure. 

The State excited against the Federal 
government. 

Martial law enforced, June, 1862. 

General J. T. Boyle military comman- 
dant. 

Provost marshals appointed in every 
county. 

Terrible raids of outlaws called guer- 
rillas. 

Severe measures enforced to suppress 
guerrillas. 



Morgan's first Kentucky raid. 

His quick wits and bold methods. 

His victory in the battle of Cynthi- 
ana. 

His effective service to the Confed- 
eracy. 

The State administration mainly 
Conservative Union. 

Governor Magoffin, a Southern 
Rights man, resigns. 

His successor chosen in a unique 
• manner. 

James F. Robinson, Conservative, 
becomes governor. 

Over 40,000 Confederates organized 
at Chattanooga. 

General Braxton Bragg in chief com- 
mand. 

The invasion of Kentucky proposed. 

The State invaded by E. Kirby 
Smith with one third of this army. 

The only organized force of the 
State at Richmond. 



THE SECOND INVASION OF KENTUCKY 



195 



General William Nelson, Federal, in 
command. 

Confederate victory in the battle of 
Richmond. 

They triumphantly enter Lexington. 

Are joined by Morgan's Confederate 
cavalry. 

The legislature adjourns to Louis- 
ville. 

Bragg's dilatory march to Kentucky. 

Buell reaches the State first. 

Lakes possession of Louisville. 

Federals also in possession of Cin- 
cinnati. 

Buell has the advantage of Bragg. 

Bragg's army inaugurates a governor 
at Frankfort. 

The two armies meet at Perryville. 



A terrible engagement. 

An indecisive result. 

Fighting ends at twilight. 

Buell proposes to continue the action 

on the morrow. 
Bragg withdraws his forces the next 

day. 
Buell refrains from bringing on an- 
other encounter. 
Bragg, joined by General Smith, es- 
capes from the State. 
War practically at an end in Ken- 
tucky. 
Kentucky soldiers in the great battles 

of the South. 
Their courage and conspicuous size. 
Numbers furnished by the State to 
each side. 



CHAPTER XVIII 

CIVIL CONFLICTS, 1863-1865 

The opposition in Kentucky to the Lincoln administra. 

tion rose to a high tide when on January i, 1863, the 

President issued his Emancipation Proclama- 

Kentucky . ,., . , , . , ,. 

opposed to Lin tion, hbcrating the slaves in the seceding 
CO n s po icy 3ta^|-gs Kentucky, being loyal, was not im- 
mediately concerned; but the proclamation was deemed 
a violation of the constitution of the United States. 

President Lincoln had been elected under a policy which 
declared that all the people in the seceded States had to 
do was to lay down their arms and return to their allegiance 
to the Union, and that then they would be protected in 
all their rights by the constitution. As the war progressed, 
it seemed necessary to the President to depart from this 
policy. But the people of Kentucky, at that exciting time, 
could not perceive as we do to-day the destiny which urged 
Lincoln on to mighty deeds. 

The Radical or Unconditional Union element in the 
State alone upheld the administration ; but the controlling 
Opposition power was still the Conservative Union, or 
increased Union Democratic party, as it was now called. 

Their ticket was victorious at the August election. Thomas 
Elliot Bramlette and Richard T. Jacob, both Federal 
-officers, were chosen respectively governor and lieutenant 
governor. Although there was hardly a possibility of the 
Union ticket being defeated, the most arbitrary means 

196 



CIVIL CONFLICTS 



197 



were enforced to secure its success. The military officers 
of the State were controlled by orders from the War De- 
partment in Washington. Prior to the election, martial 
law was declared. The polls were guarded by soldiers, and 
no disloyal person was allowed to vote. The Kentuckians 
very generally resented this interference of the military 
rulers with their civil government. 

In the autumn of 1863, President Lincoln called for 
three hundred thousand more men to prosecute the war. 
Kentucky's quota was twelve thousand seven uggro soldiers 
hundred and one. Early in January, 1864, enrolled 
the Federal government began recruiting in the State 
negro regiments for the United States army. Now the 
people of Kentucky had 
ever been true to the 
Union. No call for 
men and money had 
been made upon them 
that was not promptly 
met. They were gal- 
lant soldiers, proud of 
their military record. 
The negroes were their 
slaves. To arm these 
slaves and place them 
by their side in battle 
seemed to them at 
that time a degrada- 
tion to themselves and 
to that high calling 

for which they had volunteered their lives. What we 
name race prejudice to-day was, at that time, an almost 
unconquerable feeling. 




Drilling Negro Recruits 



198 THE CIVIL WAR 

Opposition to this measure and to the men who con- 
trolled the Federal government burst forth in denunciatory 
Indignation of Speeches within the State and in Congress. 
Kentucky ^|. Lexington, the daring Federal cavalry 

raider, Colonel Frank L. Wolford, with his picturesque, 
untutored eloquence, roused the people to revolt from the 
idea of " keeping step to the music of the Union alongside 
of negro soldiers"; and for his defiance was arrested 
and imprisoned. Lieutenant Governor Jacob also de- 
nounced the methods of the administration, and likewise 
suffered arrest. In Congress, Aaron Harding spoke ably 
on the same subject, and William Henry Wadsworth made 
a speech which increased Kentucky's claim to orators. 

Early in January, 1864, General Boyle resigned the 
position of military commandant of Kentucky. He had 
Military Striven to fulfill his trying duties as a Christian 

oppression gentleman; and his resignation was a misfor- 
tune to the Kentuckians. For the next two years the people 
were harassed by a series of military rulers who were re- 
garded at the time as nothing less than tyrannical. In 
February, Major General Steven G. Burbridge was ap- 
pointed commander of the department of Kentucky. He 
belonged to the extreme Radical wing of the Union party 
in his State, and he met the situation in Kentucky in what 
seemed a harsh and unrelenting manner. 

The terrible guerrilla raids, alike condemned by honor- 
able Confederates and Federals, became exasperatingly 
Notorious frequent during the last years of the war. 

guerrillas Scarcely a county in the State escaped their 

depredations, and their leaders usually succeeded in evad- 
ing the officers of the law. It was only after long months, 
when unnumbered crimes had been committed, that three 
of the most notorious leaders were captured ; and then by 



CIVIL CONFLICTS 1 99 

accident. Captain, Billy Magruder, of a powerful gang, 
had been dangerously wounded. Two of his comrades, 
Henry Metcalf and "Sue Munday," — showing that spark 
of goodness which exists in all human beings, — had tarried 
by to nurse him. They were captured, and Munday, the 
most conspicuous of the three, was taken to Louisville and 
hung, although to the last he maintained his innocence of 
the crimes with which he was charged. 

Meanwhile terror filled the hearts of the aged, and the 
women and children ; for none were exempt from the 
guerrilla cruelties. The civil authorities of the civii and miu- 
Commonwealth made an earnest effort to sup- ^^y conflicts 
press this evil, but they did not have the power which 
belonged to their offices. From now until the establish- 
ment of peace they were disturbed and enfeebled by un- 
avoidable conflicts with the military rulers which the 
secretary of war placed over the State. 

The new commanding officer, General Burbridge, as- 
sumed control of the State. The measures which he 
adopted to suppress the guerrillas were thought very gen- 
erally to be as brutal as the acts of those outlaws them- 
selves. He issued an order to the effect that whenever a 
citizen was killed by guerrillas, four military prisoners 
should be taken to the spot where the murder was com- 
mitted, and hung in retaliation. These prisoners were 
supposed to be guerrillas, yet as has been stated, guerrillas 
were seldom captured. The victims were usually simply 
Confederate prisoners of war. Strong opposition to such 
measures was expressed throughout the State, but to no 
effect. In the western district, where Brigadier General 
E. A. Paine was in command, the military acts grew so 
oppressive — extending even to bold murder and robbery 
— that many peaceable citizens were obliged to abandon 



200 



THE CIVIL WAR 



their homes to escape a horrible fate. In several cases, 
even loyal men who had fought for the Union, were 
arrested by order of General Burbridge and sent outside 
of Kentucky, because they had expressed their opposition 
to the men in control of national affairs. But these were 
not all the grievances which the people of that day had to 
deplore. The Federal officers further encroached upon 

the civil powers by attempt- 
ing to control the elections of 
the State. 

In August, 1864, the elec- 
tion for judge of the court of 
appeals in the „. , 

^^ ^ ^ Victory of Con- 

second district servatlve union 

was to take place, ^ ^ ^ 
as well as for some minor 
county and precinct officers. 
Judge Alvin Duvall, a South- 
ern Rights man, was the 
Democratic candidate for re- 
election. The division in the 
Union party of the State, 
which has already been noted, 
was steadily becoming more pronounced. Mortimer M. 
Benton, an eminent lawyer of Covington, was the nominee 
of the Radical wing of that party. 

Several days before the election. General Burbridge 
ordered that the name of Alvin Duvall should not 
be allowed to appear on the poll books as a candidate. 
This interference of the military authorities with the civil 
government was not only insufferable, but altogether un- 
necessary. Kentucky was still a zealous Union State. 
There was no chance just yet of any Southern Rights 




George Robertson 



CIVIL CONFLICTS 



201 



candidate being elected. The coast now seemed cleared 
for the election of the Radical candidate, Benton ; but the 
Conservative Union men, in righteous resentment of Gen- 
eral Burbridge's order, on the very morning of the election, 
telegraphed over the district the name of a new candidate, 
George Robertson, formerly chief justice, and he was 
elected. 

George Robertson, who was one of the most competent 
judges in Kentucky, had always been on the Conserva^ 
George tivc sidc in 

Robertson politics. He 

had taken part in the in- 
teresting conflict between 
the Old Court and New 
Court parties, upholding 
the former faction. He 
had been a stanch Whig, 
and now he was a Con- 
servative supporter of the 
Union. He stood promi- 
nent in the midst of such 
able lawyers as Madison 
C. Johnson, George Black- 
burn Kinkead, Thomas A. 
Marshall, and Aaron K. 

Woolly, of the Lexington bar, and Samuel Smith Nicholas, 
James Guthrie, and James Speed, of the Louisville bar. 

The political state of Kentucky was most interesting 
at this time. The year 1864 was the year of the presiden- 
tial election. Kentucky held three conven- Action of the 
tions to select delegates to the national con- three parties 
ventions. The Unconditional Union, or Radical conven- 
tion, was presided over by Robert J. Breckinridge, a 




George B. McClellan 



202 



THE CIVIL WAR 



Presbyterian divine and political speaker, — a strong con- 
trolling spirit in his party. This convention indorsed the 
administration and voted for President Lincoln's reelection. 
The Conservative Union, or Union Democratic, convention, 
of which James Guthrie was the leading spirit, boldly an- 
nounced its opposition to Lincoln and declared for General 
George B. McClellan. The Democratic, or Southern 
Rights, convention was harmonious with the Conserva- 
tive, and in favor of McClellan. 

President Lincoln received the nomination on the basis 

of reestablishment 

lljll (^f the Union with- 

''"'■'^ t!^!! ^^^'^ slavery; Gen- 
"''■' '' ■'^'^'^ eral McClellan, of 
reestablishment with 
sleLvery. Lincoln 
w as elected No- 
\ ember, End of the 
icS64, by *'^s^^y 
an overwhelming 
majority ; but Ken- 
tucky gave a ma- 
jority of over thirty- 
six thousand to 
McClellan. Peace 
was at hand. The 
State was becoming 
relieved of her mil- 
itary oppressors. 
Toward the end of the year, Paine was deprived of his 
office in the western district, and the following February 
General Burbridge was replaced by General Palmer, to the 
great satisfaction of the Kentuckians. 




Ulysses S. Craat 



aVIL CONFLICTS 



203 



On April 9, 1865, the Confederate General Robert E. 
Lee surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia to General 
U. S. Grant, at Appo- 
mattox Courthouse, Vir- 
ginia. 

Five days later, Abra- 
ham Lincoln was assassi- 
nated at Ford's theater, 
in Washington. But he 
had finished his work. 
The cause for which he 
lost his life was estab- 
lished. In December, 
1865, the Thirteenth 
Amendment to the 
Federal constitution — 
which declared that nei- 
ther slavery nor involun- 
tary servitude should 
any longer exist in the United States — was ratified by 
three fourths of the States and became a part of the con- 
stitution. Kentucky opposed the amendment. 




Robert E. Lee 



RECAPITULATION 



Lincoln departs from the policy he 
was elected under. 

Issues the Emancipation Proclama- 
tion, January i, 1863. 

Radical Union party of Kentucky ap- 
proves his course. 

Conservative Union party denounces 
it. 

Conservative Union party the con- 
trolling pov/er. 



Colonels T. E. Bramlette and R. T. 
Jacob, Conservatives, elected gov- 
ernor and lieutenant governor, Au- 
gust, 1863. 

Martial law enforced during the elec- 
tion. 

Negro soldiers first recruited in the 
State, January, 1864. 

Jacob and Wolford denounce the ad- 
ministration on this account. 



204 



THE CIVIL WAR 



They are arrested and banished. 

General Boyle resigns his office. 

S. G. Burbridge, a Radical Union 
man, appointed commander of 
Kentucky military department. 

The beginning of harassing situa- 
tions. 

The State's civil rulers are Conserva- 
tive. 

The military rulers are Radical. 

They are in conflict until peace is es- 
tablished. 

Munday, Magruder, and Metcalf, no- 
torious guerrillas. 

Many crimes committed by them and 
other guerrillas. 

Confederate prisoners of war hung 
in retaliation. 

General E. A. Paine's course in the 
western district. 

The military attempt to control elec- 
tions. 

Judge Alvin Duvall, a Southern 
Rights man, candidate for reelec- 
tion to court of appeals. 

Military forbid his name to appear 
on the poll books. 



Efforts of the military to elect the 
Radical candidate. 

Defeated by the prompt action of 
the Conservatives. 

George Robertson, Conservative, 
elected. 

Conservative Union, Radical Union, 
and Democratic conventions held. 

The Radical Union convention for 
Lincoln. 

Conservatives and Democrats support 
McClellan for President. 

President Lincoln reelected. 

Kentucky's large vote for McClellan. 

General Burbridge replaced by Gen- 
eral Palmer. 

Kentucky rejoices over Palmer's ap- 
pointment. 

Paine removed in the western dis- 
trict. 

Peace at hand. 

Lee surrenders at Appomattox Court- 
house. 

Abraham Lincoln assassinated. 

The Thirteenth Amendment passed. 

Slavery abolished in the United 
States, December, 1865. 



V — THE NEW KENTUCKY, SINCE i86? 



CHAPTER XIX 

THE RESTORATION OF PEACE, 1 865-1 875 

On December 18, 1865, the Conservative majority in the 
legislature passed resolutions of general pardon to all 
citizens who had fought for the Confederacy. Return of the 
As the Confederate soldiers returned to their confederates 
old places, the Conservative men, who still had control of 
the State, stretched forth their hands in welcome, with a 
promise to forget the differences which had separated 
them in past issues, in the hope that the good men of all 
parties would unite with them for the restoration of peace. 

But in this they were disappointed. The Confederate 
soldiers had just suffered defeat. They believed that the 
support which the Conservative men caused „ 

^ ^ _ _ Powerful 

the State to give to the Union was an impor- Democratic 
tant factor in that defeat. Therefore, they had ^^^^^^^^ ^°° 
little desire for party harmony with those men. Also, the 
people in general, who had stayed at home and taken no 
active part in the war, had suffered so much from the mil- 
itary rulers which the Republican party had placed over 
the State, that they felt a temporary hostility towards 
Union principles. Even a portion of the old Conservative 
element went over into the more extreme position of the 

205 



2o6 



THE NEW KENTUCKY 



Democrats. Thus, when the Democratic State convention 
met at Frankfort, February 22, 1867, to select nominees 
for the pending August elections, it showed a large and 
powerful body. At the other extreme stood the Radical, 
or Republican, party, which had steadily, though slowly, 
increased in the State, and at this time received also a 

portion of the Con- 
servative force. This 
party put forth a 
ticket headed by S. 
M. Barnes and R. T. 
Baker. 

The men who vStill 
adhered to the Con- 
servative ^ ^ „ ^^u 
Downfall of the 

doctrine conservative 
party 

o r gan- 

ized in Louisville in 
the spring of 1867 
and nominated W. B. 
Kinkead for gover- 
nor, Harrison Taylor 
William B. Kinkead for lieutenant gover- 

nor, John M. Harlan 
for attorney-general, J. S. Hurt for auditor, Alfred Allen 
for treasurer, J. J. Craddock for register, and B. M. 
Harney for superintendent of public instruction. They 
had no hope of carrying the election. Their purpose in 
presenting a ticket was the opportunity thereby gained of 
making known their principles. Their work was finished. 
They soon dissolved as an organization and passed mainly 
into the Democratic party. A few, however, went with 
the Republicans. Distinguished among these were C. F. 




THE RESTORATION OF PEACE 



207 



Burnam, John M. Harlan, James Speed, and William 
Henry Wadsworth, who received high national ap- 
pointments. 

The Democratic ticket was composed of John L. Helm 
for governor, John W. Stevenson for lieutenant governor, 
John Rodman for attorney-general, D. Howard Democratic 
Smith for auditor, J. W. Tate for treasurer, J. triumph 
A. Dawson for register, and Z. F. Smith for superintend- 
ent of public instruction. The 
Democratic candidates were 
elected by an enormous ma- 
jority, and the politics of the 
State was settled for many 
years to come. Until the 
present day this party has 
had almost undisputed power. 
Only Democrats of Southern 
sympathies were elected to 
Congress, with one exception. 
Major George M. Adams, 
a Federal soldier, who had 
now joined the Democratic 
party, received the election 
in the 8th district ; and for 
some time he alone was al- 
lowed to take his seat in Congress. 

On September 3, 1867, John L. Helm received the oath 
of inauguration as governor, while lying dangerously ill at 
his home in Elizabethtown. Five days later johnw. 
he died, and John W. Stevenson, the Heutenant Stevenson 
governor, became acting governor until the following 
August, when he was elected governor. Governor Steven- 
son was a man eminently fitted for the position to which 




William H. Wadsworth 



2o8 



THE NEW KENTUCKY 






he was called. He was a lawyer, and at the Covington 
bar had gained the reputation of exceptional ability. By 
this time Kentucky was in a state of financial prosperity 

and comparative peace, 
' though law and order 

were not yet firmly es- 
tablished. 

One of the causes of 
the disturbance of the 
peace was the establish- 
ment in the State, in the 
year 1865, of agencies 
^^ i^f ' ^^ ^^^ Freedmen's 

^'^^Blh^ -•"^4ii1 ' Bureau. In preedmen's 

jBHE^Hp 'i^' March, 1865, ^''''^'' 

^^^^mk ^F 1 ^: ■ Congress had passed an 

" * act setting free the 

. wives and children of 

L.. . negro soldiers. This 

John w. Stevenson was prior to the adop- 

tion of the Thirteenth 
Amendment to the Federal constitution, which declared 
that slavery should no longer exist in the United States. 
We have seen that the emancipation act of 1863 did not 
practically affect Kentucky, which was a loyal State ; but 
the agents of the Freedmen's Bureau attempted to en- 
force this law in Kentucky. They demanded money for 
the services of the wives and children of negroes who had 
been enlisted in the United States army. The proceed- 
ing was deemed unconstitutional, and was deeply resented 
by the Commonwealth. 

A number of suits were brought for this cause by the 
Freedmen's Bureau ; but they were all lost, as the court 




THE RESTORATION OF PEACE 209 

of appeals sustained the lower courts. The first was 
against Garrett Davis, then ably representing Kentucky in 
the United States Senate, — a stanch Union man and a 
large owner of slaves. The effect of the Freedmen's 
Bureau was: (i) to irritate the people against the Re- 
publican party, the party in power in the nation ; (2) to 
strengthen the Democratic party; (3) to retard the ad- 
vancement of the negro. 

The organization assumed the guardianship of the race. 
It awoke an opposition on the part of the slave to his 
former owner, and thereby prevented the friendly rela- 
tions which to-day exist between the two races. By 1870, 
the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments to the United 
States constitution were ratified and the rights of citizen- 
ship and suffrage were conferred upon the negroes of the 
nation. 

Another cause of the disturbance of the peace was the 
terror created in various counties of the State — especially 
Marion, Boyle, Lincoln, and Mercer — by 
bands of men at first called Regulators and 
afterward Kuklux. These men took it upon themselves 
to punish the offenders against the laws of the State. 
When a crime was committed, a large number of them 
would go out together in the dead of night, thoroughly 
armed, and disguised by masks, proceed to the home of 
the culprit, drag him out of bed, take him to the woods, 
and whip him or inflict some other torture upon him. 
The members of the Kuklux pretended that such acts 
were done by them in order to intimidate evildoers, and 
thereby improve the moral condition of the State ; but in 
reality these men made themselves criminals of the most 
dangerous order. Their conduct was wrong enough when 
their cruelties fell upon the guilty; it was horrible when 

KENT. HIST. — 14 



2IO THE NEW KENTUCKY 

the innocent became their victims. The Kukliix were 

suppressed by 1873, but the lawless spirit which animated 

them has not yet wholly died out in Kentucky. Sometimes, 

particularly in the hill country, lynchings still occur — the 

speedy executions of mob law. 

Governor Stevenson, having been elected to the United 

States Senate in February, 1871, resigned the position of 

governor, and Preston H. Leslie, acting lieu- 
Negroes vote o J ' o 

for the first tenant governor, assumed the duties of the 
office. The following August he was elected 
governor. His opponent was the eminent Republican, 
John M. Harlan. John G. Carlisle was elected lieutenant 
governor. The Democratic majority was greatly reduced, 
because of the addition to the Republican numbers for the 
first time of the negro vote. Whereas, in the presidential 
vote of 1868 the Democratic majority in the State had 
been seventy-six thousand, at this time it was scarcely 
more than thirty-seven thousand. 

At the close of the war was begun a much-needed 
reform in the public school system of the State. We 
Educational have noticcd that Kentuckians had never 
affairs been indifferent to education ; nevertheless, 

the facilities for public education had never been of the 
very highest. Old Transylvania University had now 
passed away. Center College, chartered by the Presby- 
terians in 1 8 19, still existed, and retained somewhat of 
that picturesque interest which had formerly belonged to 
it. Its distinguished presidents were from some of the 
most prominent families of the State, — Reverends Jere 
miah Chamberlin, Gideon Blackburn, John C. Young, 
Lewis W. Green, and William L. Breckinridge. Other 
denominational colleges existed in various parts of the 
State, but Kentuckv was beginning to realize that it is 



THE RESTORATION OF PEACE 211 

upon the public schools that the educational life of a 
State depends. 

The financial condition of the Commonwealth at the 
close of the war was good. In 1873, there occurred a 
financial panic which was the greatest ever Period of 
known in the history of this nation. Though ^^^^^^^^ 
much individual loss was endured in Kentucky, as a Com- 
monwealth she suffered less than many of the other 
States of the Union. 

A bill having passed the legislature to establish a geo- 
logical survey in Kentucky, in 1873, Governor Leslie 
appointed Nathaniel Southgate Shaler, then filling the 
chair of Geology in Harvard University, as chief of the 
corps of survey. Professor Shaler, a Kentuckian, brought 
into the work an earnest enthusiasm, as well as exceptional 
scholarship. Vast sums of money were expended, and the 
wealth which lies hidden in the depths of Kentucky was 
discovered and made known. The richness of many 
counties, the mineral resources of others, and the fineness 
of the timber regions were all pointed out as offering a 
splendid opportunity for the investment of home and 
foreign capital. But the reaction which followed the 
cessation of war had reduced the Kentuckians to a state 
of temporary inactivity. They were not yet ready for 
commercial enterprise. 

RECAPITULATIOI? 



Conservatives still in power. 

Legislature passes resolutions of par- 
don to Confederates. 

Return of the Confederate soldiers. 

Confederates do not desire party har- 
mony with Conservatives. 



The State made more extreme through 
suffering caused by the war. 

A reaction against Conservatism en- 
sues. 

Large growth of the Democratic 
party. 



212 



THE NEW KENTUCKY 



Lesser growth of the Republican 
party. 

August elections of 1867 approach- 
ing. 

Conservatives offer a ticket with no 
hope of election. 

They simply desire to make known 
their principles. 

Their work at an end. 

They pass mainly into the Demo- 
cratic party. 

Certain ones become distinguished 
among the Republicans. 

Republicans also offer a ticket. 

Democrats triumphantly carry the 
State. 

Governor John L. Helm dies a few 
days after his inauguration. 

John W. Stevenson, the lieutenant 
governor, becomes acting gov- 
ernor. 

He is elected to the office the follow- 
ing August. 

The Freedmen's Bureau causes an- 
noyance. 



It retards the advancement of the 
negro. 

The Kuklux, a low order of secret out- 
laws, disturb the peace. 

Governor Stevenson elected United 
States senator. 

Preston H. Leslie becomes acting 
governor. 

He is elected the following August. 

John G. Carlisle elected lieutenant 
governor. 

Negroes vote for the first time. 

A public school reform begun. 

Old Transylvania University no longer 
in existence. 

Center College, a picturesque- institu- 
tion, still in existence. 

Its learned and prominent presidents. 

Public schools the educational life 
of a State. 

Financial panic of 1873. 

Professor Shaler appointed State geol- 
ogist. 

Kentucky's resources pointed out. 

The State not ready for enterprise. 



CHAPTER XX 

THE ERA OF TRANSITIOX, 1875- 

The future greatness of Kentucky must largely depend 
upon education. The reform in the public instruction of 
the State, begun after the war, has been stead- 
ily progressing toward a more elevated stand- Snin tt^' 
ard. For the training of school teachers, the ^^^^^ 
State has established (1906) two well-equipped Normal 
Schools for white persons, at Richmond and Bowling 
Green; and (1886) one for colored persons, at Frankfort. 
The State has also made provision for higher education, 
and now possesses an institution, the graduates of which 
take rank, in post-graduate honors and degrees, with those 
of the best colleges in the country. 

The State College of Kentucky (Agricultural and Me- 
chanical College) owed its origin to the act of Congress 
of 1862 donating public lands for its endowment. From 
1865 to 1878 it was attached to the old Kentucky Univer- 
sity. In 1880 it was placed upon an independent basis, 
under the management of a Board appointed by the State.' 
In 1908 it was reorganized as the State University (the 
older Kentucky University being renamed Transylvania 
University). It now owns grounds, buildings, and other 
property valued at about $1,000,000. To James K. Patter- 
son, its learned and efficient president since 1869, and to 
the late Judge W. B. Kinkead, long the chairman of the 
Executive Board, is due the provision which opens all its 

213 



214 THE NEW KENTUCKY 

classes to young women, placing them on an equal footing 
with the male students. Each county is entitled to send 
a certain number of white students who may attend the 
University for a full four years' course, free of tuition, 
matriculation, and dormitory fees. All appointments are 
made by the county superintendent of schools, upon com- 
petitive examination of applicants between the ages of 
fourteen and twenty-four years ; but preference is given 
to those who have passed through the pubhc schools. The 
university is thus the head of the common school system 
of Kentucky. 

We are too near the men who have guided the affairs 

of Kentucky since 1875 to make any discrimination as to 

their services. The three administrations from 

state politics 

1875 to 1887 were concerned with few matters 
of definite importance for this history. In 1875, James B. 
McCreary, the Democratic candidate, was elected governor, 
and John C. Underwood, lieutenant governor. During 
Governor McCreary's term of office, two United States 
senators were chosen, — James B. Beck, for six years from 
the 4th of March, 1877; and General John S. Williams, 
from 1879. Dr. Luke Pryor Blackburn, Democrat, was 
elected governor in 1879; ^^^ James E. Cantrill, lieutenant 
governor. The most notable event in Governor Black- 
burn's administration was his humane effort to relieve the 
suffering in the State penitentiary. At this time there 
were nine hundred and sixty-nine convicts in a building 
which contained but seven hundred and eighty cells. 
There was much unnecessary suffering in this miserable 
abode, and Governor Blackburn pardoned many of the 
most trustworthy inmates in order to make better accom- 
modation for those who were retained. 

J. Proctor Knott and J. R. Hindman, Democrats, were 



THE ERA OF TRANSITION 



215 



elected, respectively, governor and lieutenant governor from 
1883 to 1887, by a majority of nearly forty-five thousand 
votes. James B. Beck was returned to the United States 
Senate, and J. C. S. Blackburn succeeded John S. Williams. 

While the Democrats retained control in State poli- 
tics, the party in power in the nation was the Republican. 
But in 1884, a change occurred. Grover Cleve- National 
land and Thomas A. Hendricks, Democrats, politics 
were elected, respectively, President and Vice President. 
Much rejoicing was felt through- 
out the South and in the Demo- 
cratic States; for this was the 
first Democratic administration 
in twenty-four years. Vice 
President Hendricks died short- 
ly after the inauguration, and on 
the 25th of November, 1885, 
John Sherman, Republican, was 
elected to preside over the 
United States Senate, thus oc- 
casioning the unique situation 
of a President and acting Vice 
President of opposite parties. 

It is refreshing to turn for a moment from the considera- 
tion of dry annals to matters of a more entertaining nature. 
In the year 1884 was started in the city of The Fiison 
Louisville an organization that has had the ^^"^ 
greatest influence in discovering and preserving the inter- 
esting facts in the State's history. The Fiison Club owes 
its origin mainly to the inspiration of its president. Colonel 
Reuben T. Durrett, whose knowledge and enthusiasm in 
regard to Kentucky subjects are unsurpassed. The mem- 
bers of the club reside in the various counties of the State. 




Grover Cleveland 



2l6 



THE NEW KENTUCKY 



By them old garrets have been searched for forgotten 
manuscripts, old letters have been brought to light, and 

new and important in- 
formation has been 
gathered concerning the 
character and life of the 
early settlers. The pub- 
lications of the club are 
invaluable to students of 
Kentucky history. 

In the State elections 
of 1887, the Democratic 
party continued in 
power. General Simon 
B. Buckner and James 
W. Bryan were elected 
governor and lieutenant 
governor. Three other 
tickets were run, — a Pro- 
hibition, a Union Labor ticket, which received an insignifi- 
state elections cant vote, and a Republican ticket, headed by 
of 1887 ^^ Q Bradley and Matthew O'Doherty. A 

considerable increase in the Republican vote was discov- 
ered. The Democratic majority was somewhat less than 
seventeen thousand. At this time, also, a vote was taken 
upon the question of revising the State constitution, and a 
majority of ninety-six thousand votes in favor of so doing 
was obtained. 

On the 3d day of May, 1890, an act to call a constitu- 
tional convention passed the legislature, and the second 
The new Monday (the 8th day) of September following 

constitution ^^^ appointed for its assembling. Important 
changes were made in the three departments of State 




Reuben T. Durrett 



THE ERA OF TRANSITION 



217 




government, — the executive, legislative, and judicial. 
Under the first head, a conspicuous alteration is that all 
officers are debarred from 
holding the same office two 
consecutive terms. Under 
the second head, special leg- 
islation was abolished and 
necessary provisions in re- 
gard to corporations were 
made. Under the third head, 
the superior court and all 
statutory courts were abol- 
ished. An increase was made 
in the number of judges of 
the appellate court, — not less 
than five nor more than seven 
being required, and in the 
number of circuit courts, one 
being allowed for every forty thousand inhabitants. 

On the 1st of June, 1892, one hundred years had passed 
since the admission of Kentucky into the Union; and the 
people again assembled at Lexington to do The centenary 
honor to the State's nativity. Here, in the of Kentucky 
midst of almost unbroken forests, was organized the first 
government of the new Commonwealth. All was changed 
since then : much was lost ; much was gained. There 
were present this day the old grandchildren of those who 
had taken part in the first celebration, by the side of the 
young great-grandchildren. The former looked back with 
wistful pride into the past, with which they were more 
nearly connected ; while the latter looked eagerly forward 
to a future brightened by reflections from the heroic 
background. Philadelphia sent three paintings as an 



Simon B. Buckner 



2l8 THE NEW KENTUCKY 

offering to the State. Speeches were made in thanks for 
these and also to extol, in true Kentucky fashion, the glo- 
ries of the past and present. At Woodland Park a bar- 
becue was prepared ; and under the shade of ancient oaks 
and elms, burgoo — that mysterious concoction which 
Kentuckians know how to brew — was served with the 
finest of beef and ham and Southdown mutton which the 
county could offer. And thus another century of promise 
was ushered in. 

The Democratic party continued in power in the State. 
In 1 89 1, John Young Brown, of Henderson County, and 
Renewed Mitchell Gary Alford, of Fayette, were elected 

power of the governor and lieutenant govcmor. In national 

Democrats . . 

politics, also, there was a change of parties. 
The following year, Grover Cleveland was elected Pres- 
ident for the second time, succeeding Benjamin Harrison, 
Republican. 

Somewhat prior to this time, there occurred in the nation 
a frantic speculation in lands. " Boom " towns seemed to 
spring up in a night. Hotels were built, manufactories 
were started, and electric lights were introduced. As to 
other necessary requirements for a city, they existed only 
on paper. Nevertheless, even the soberest were affected 
by the delirium of speculation. In Kentucky, vast sums 
were sunk in unsubstantial investments. As a result of this 
general desire for rapidly gained fortunes, and on account of 
certain national political conditions, a desolating panic swept 
the country. Consequently, the thoughts of the people were 
much occupied with the consideration of financial matters. 

The Democratic State convention met in Louisville, 
June 25, 1895, for the purpose of nominating the various 
State officers for the election which was to be held the 
following November. Some time previous to the assem- 



THE ERA OF TRANSITION 



219 



bling of this convention, P. W. Hardin, one of the aspir- 
ants for the governorship, boldly announced himself an 
advDcate of the free coinage of silver. Cas- The currency 
sius M. Clay, Jr., his opponent, maintained <i"^stion 
that the money question was not a pertinent issue in a 
State election. The national administration, under Cleve- 
land, had been out- 
spoken in its opposition 
to the free coinage of 
silver, and the secretary 
of the treasury, John G. 
Carlisle, of Kentucky, 
now made three speeches 
in the State, uphold- 
ing the gold standard. 
When the convention 
met, it indorsed the pol- 
icy of Cleveland and 
Carlisle, but nominated 
Hardin for governor, 
partly because of his 
magnetic personality. 

The Republican party 
nominated WilHam O. 
Bradley for governor, 

and he advocated the single gold standard. Populist and 
Prohibition party tickets were also named. Hardin, in 
spite of the Democratic platform, argued for free silver. 
The Republicans elected their entire ticket, and Kentucky 
had her first Republican governor. W. J. Worthington 
was elected lieutenant governor. 

The turbulent legislature of 1896 was composed of an 
even number of Republicans and Democrats, with two 




John G. Carlisle 



220 



THE NEW KENTUCKY 



Legislature of 
1896 



Election of 1896 



Populist members. For United States senator, J. C. S. 
Blackburn, a free-silver man, was selected as the Demo- 
cratic caucus nominee for reelection. Eleven 
gold-standard Democrats, however, refused to 
go into the caucus. Congressman W. Godfrey Hunter 
was the Republican nominee ; but a few Republicans re- 
fused to vote for him. The effort of each side to hold its 
own against the other created extreme excitement. The 
legislature adjourned without having effected an election. 
The silver question in 1896 caused a split in the Demo- 
cratic party. The regular organization favored the free 
coinage of silver, and supported William J. 
Bryan for the presidency. Some of the Demo- 
crats opposed to free silver voted for Palmer and Buckner, 

candidates for President and 
Vice President on the '* Na- 
tional Democratic" ticket. 
General Buckner had served 
as governor of the state, and 
had many warm personal 
and political friends. The 
result in Kentucky and in 
the nation was a victory for 
McKinley, the Republican 
candidate. 

At a special session of 
the legislature in 1897 the 
contest over the 
vacant seat in 
the United States Senate 
was resumed and became 
very bitter. The caucus nominees were again W. Godfrey 
Hunter, Republican, and J. C. S. Blackburn, Democrat; 




Senatorial 
elections 



William O. Bradley 



THE ERA OF TRANSITION 



22; 



but neither could command the entire strength of his 
party. On the 112th ballot W. J. Deboe, a Republican, 
was elected. For the next ten years a large majority of 
the legislature was Democratic. In 1900 Blackburn was 
elected senator to succeed William J. Lindsay. Six years 
later he was succeeded by Judge Thomas H. Paynter. 
Senator Deboe was succeeded by Ex-Governor James B. 
McCreary (elected in 1902). 

During Governor Bradley's term as governor much dis- 
turbance was caused by toll-gate raiders. Many toll-gates 
were destroyed, and the collection of tolls prevented by 
violence. The property of many turnpike companies was 
bought by the counties, and order was restored. 

The legislature of 1898 enacted an election bill intro- 
duced by William Goebel, State 
senator, and passed it over 
Governor Bradley's veto. This 
placed the appointment of elec- 
tion officers and the canvassing 
of returns in the hands of a 
State board of three commis- 
sioners to be elected by the 
legislature, and of county boards 
to be appointed by the State 
board. 

In 1899 the Democrats, after a 
prolonged struggle in their con- 
On the verge vention, nominated 
of civil war William Goebel for 
governor, and J. C. W. Beck- 
ham for lieutenant governor. 
Democrats opposed to Goebel 
and to the new election law named an opposition ticket 




Wiiliam Goebel 



222 THE NEW KENTUCKY 

headed by Ex-Governor John Young Brown. The Re- 
publican candidates were William S. Taylor for governor 
and John Marshall for lieutenant governor. Populist, Pro- 
hibition, and Socialist-Labor tickets were also in the field, 
as they have been in many elections since. The majority 
of the election commissioners declared Taylor and Mar- 
shall elected, and they were sworn in. The Democrats 
contested the election. Hundreds of armed men came to 
Frankfort and petitioned the legislature not to depose 
Taylor and Marshall ; for it was believed that the legis- 
lature was about to decide the contest in favor of Goebel 
and Beckham. On January 30, 1900, Goebel was shot by 
an assassin concealed in one of the rooms of the execu- 
tive building. Governor- Taylor declared it unsafe for 
the legislature to continue its meetings in Frankfort, and 
by proclamation adjourned it to meet at London, Feb- 
ruary 6. The Democratic majority of the legislature 
ignored his act, but were shut out of the State House by 
militia. Nevertheless they awarded certificates of elec- 
tion to Goebel and Beckham. Goebel was sworn in as 
governor, January 31, and on his death was succeeded 
by Beckham, February 3. Taylor and Marshall refused 
to give up their offices, until after the case was decided 
against them by the State Court of Appeals (March 10) 
and the Supreme Court of the United States declined 
to interfere (May 21). For three weeks there was to be 
seen daily the strange spectacle of two different organ- 
izations of the State senate both meeting in the same 
room at the same hour, but each ignoring the presence 
of the other. Marshall presided over the Republican 
senators, who after their roll call would adjourn for lack 
of a quorum. The Democratic majority were presided 
over by a president pro tem., and carried on business. 



thp: era or transition 



223 



Thus from January till May a condition existed which 
in other lands would have promptly caused a civil war. It 
is greatly to the credit of Kentucky that nearly all our 
citizens refrained from violence, and quietly waited for the 
decision of the courts. 

Many men were accused of complicity in the murder of 
Goebel. Of the few brought to trial, some were convicted 
and some acquitted. Taylor was one of the men indicted, 
but he fled to Indiana, and 
the governor of that State 
refused to honor Governor 
Beckham's requisition for 
him, claiming that men ac- 
cused of Goebel's murder 
could not obtain a fair trial. 
Governor Beckham called 
a special session of the legis- 
lature to modify the election 
law. It was provided that 
the State board 
should consist of 
two commissioners appointed 
by the governor, one from 
each party, together with the 
clerk of the Court of Ap- 
peals; and that each county board, likewise, should consist 
of one commissioner from each of the two chief parties, 
together with the sheriff. 

In the presidential elections of 1900, 1904, and 1908 
Kentucky voted for the Democratic candi- Pontics since 
dates. In 1900 Acting Governor Beckham was ^900 
elected governor for the unexpired term, by a close vote. 
He was again elected governor in 1903, for the next full 



Election law 




J. C. W. Beckham 



124 



THE NEW KENTUCKY 



term, by 27,000 plurality. Wm. P. Thorne was elected 
lieutenant governor. In 1907 the Republicans elected 
their State ticket, headed by Augustus E. Willson for 
governor, and W. H. Cox for lieutenant governor, by 

1 8,000 plurality. The legis- 
lature of 1908 had a Demo- 
cratic majority of 8 votes. 
Ex-Governor Beckham was 
the Democratic nominee for 
United States senator to 
succeed Senator McCreary, 
but a few Democrats re- 
fused to vote for him. The 
contest was prolonged till 
February 28, when four 
Democrats voted with the 
Republicans for Ex-Gover- 
nor Bradley, and elected 
him. 

Kentucky many years ago 
adopted a local option law, 
under which each county can decide for itself whether or 
not to prohibit the sale of alcohohc liquor within its borders. 
At first only a few did so, but the prohibition movement 
gradually spread, and to-day more than ninety counties 
prohibit the sale of liquors. 

An effort has recently been made to remove our great 
educational and charitable institutions from the domain of 
party politics. Laws of 1906 and 1908 provide that the 
two Normal Schools for white persons, and the State 
University, shall each be under the control of a bi-partisan 
board. Likewise the board of control for charitable insti- 
tutions, previously partisan, was in 1908 made bi-partisan. 




Augustus E. Willson 



THE ERA OF TRANSITION 



225 



Let US turn from the political history of the State to 
the more important industrial progress. Kentucky has 
long had a large share in the marvelous de- industrial 
velopment of our country. Since 1880 her Progress 
population has grown from 1,648,690 to about 2,500,000, 
her railroad mileage from 1530 miles to about 3500, her 
yearly output of coal from 1,000,000 tons to 10,000,000, 
and the annual product of her manufactures and her farms 
has more than doubled in value. Improved methods of 
farming are being adopted, partly through the farmers' 
and industrial institutes conducted by the State com- 
missioner of agriculture. 

After combinations of tobacco buyers had been per- 
fected, the prices paid to farmers for their tobacco fell 
lower and lower. Associations of tobacco The "Tobacco 
growers were then formed in Kentucky and ^^^ 
Tennessee for the purpose of holding back their crops 
from the market until good prices could be secured. 
Their operations in 1905-1908 were successful, although 
hampered and delayed by independent growers who re- 
fused to join the associations. To prevent the produc- 
tion and sale of independent tobacco, *' night riders " 
resorted to violence. Growing tobacco was destroyed, 
tobacco barns were burned, and men were assaulted and 
whipped. A body of 300 men burned two large factories 
at Princeton in November, 1906, and a force of 500 next 
year destroyed three factories in Hopkinsville. In all, 
many hundred thousand dollars' worth of proi)erty was 
destroyed by night riders. 

One of the tobacco-growers' associations, the Burley 
Tobacco Society, is a branch of the American Society of 
Equity. The latter organization aims to secure more 
equitable treatment for farmers generally, and urges the 



226 THE NEW KENTUCKY 

** pooling " of Other crops as well as of tobacco, in order 
to obtain a good price for all who enter the pool. 

The legislature in 1904 appropriated ^1,000,000 for a 
new capitol building, and two years later added $250,000. 
A new site in South Frankfort was chosen, and there a 
beautiful and commodious capitol, in keeping with the 
growth and dignity of the State, was erected in 1905- 1909. 

From the foregoing there may be gained some idea 

of the events occurring in the State at the present time. 

But an account of the new Kentucky must be 

The old Ken- _, ^ , , , 

tucky a pledge mainly a matter of prophecy. The old order 
for the new ^f things has passed away; the new order 
has not yet been fully developed. Kentucky's past use- 
fulness has been clearly demonstrated, but her possibilities 
for future greatness can only be pointed out and antici- 
pated. The physical and personal vigor which the pioneers 
possessed ; the training which the founders of the Com- 
monwealth received from exercising self-control when 
tempted to act rashly, produced a line of dauntless soldiers 
and forcible orators. Wars, let us hope, are ceasing. The 
uses of oratory are rapidly diminishing ; but the courage 
and the power of brain and emotion still exist, to be ex- 
pressed through other channels. From the boys and girls 
who study this history to-day rnay be raised up new soldiers 
— spiritual warriors to aid in purifying the political life 
of the State and nation, or to conquer the evil in the land 
by the might of their own high faith in goodness. And 
from what has already been done on literary lines, we may 
hope that the orator will only give place to the author who 
will sing of the border wars and the deeds of valor and 
strength in his State's romantic history, or describe the 
deep and vital feelings of the men and women of the old 
and new Kentucky. 



CONSTITUTION OF THE COMMONWEALTH 
OF KENTUCKY. 

Preamble. 

We, the people of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, grateful to 
Almighty God for the civil, political, and religious liberties we enjoy 
and mvoking the continuance of these blessings, do ordain and estab- 
ush this Constitution. 

Bill of Rights. 

That the great and essential principles of liberty and free govern- 
ment may be recognized and established, we declare that :— 
_ Section i. All men are by nature free and equal, and have certain 
inherent and inahenable rights, among which may be reckoned— 

1. The right of enjoying and defending their lives and liberties 

2. The right of worshiping Almighty God according to the dic- 
tates of their consciences, 

3- ^^^ "ght of seeking and pursuing their safety and happiness. 

^' iu ^?^ ^^^^^ communicating their thoughts and opinions 

5. 1 he right of acquiring and protecting property. 

6. The right of assembling together in a peaceable manner for their 
common good, and of applying to those invested with the power of 
government for redress of grievances or other proper purposes bv 
petition, address, or remonstrance. ' 

7. The right to bear arms in defense of themselves and of the State 
subject to the power of the General Assembly to enact laws to prevent 
persons from carrying concealed weapons. 

Sec. 2. Absolute and arbitrary power over the lives, liberty and 
property of freemen exists nowhere in a republic, not even m the 
largest majority. 

Sec. 3. All men, when they form a social compact, are equal ; and 
no grant of exclusive, separate pubhc emoluments or privileges shall 
be made to any man or set of men, except in consideration of public 
services ; but no property shall be exempt from taxation except as 
provided in this Constitution ; and every grant of a franchise, privi- 
lege, or exemption, shall remain subject to revocation, alteration or 
amendment. 

Sec. 4. All power is inherent in the people, and all free govern- 
ments are founded on their authority, and instituted for their peace, 

227 



228 CONSTITUTION OF KENFUCKY 



safety, happiness, and the protection of property. For the advance- 
ment of these ends, they have at all times an inalienable and indefeasi- 
ble right to alter, reform, or abolish their government in such manner 
as they may deem proper. 

Sec. 5. No preference shall ever be given by law to any religious 
sect, society, or denomination ; nor to any particular creed, mode of 
vi'orship, or system of ecclesiastical polity ; nor shall any person be 
compelled to attend any place of worship, to contribute to the erection 
or maintenance of any such place, or to the salary or support of any 
minister of religion; nor shall any man be compelled to send his child 
to any school to which he may be conscientiously opposed ; and the 
civil rights, privileges, or capacities of no person shall be taken away, 
or in any wise diminished or enlarged, on account of his belief or dis- 
belief of any religious tenet, dogma, or teaching. No human author- 
ity shall, in any case whatever, control or interfere with the rights of 
conscience. 

Sec. 6. All elections shall be free and equal. 

Sec. 7. The ancient mode of trial by jury shall beheld sacred, and 
the right thereof remain inviolate, subject to such modifications as 
may be authorized by this Constitution. 

Sec. 8. Printing presses shall be free to every person who under- 
takes to examine the proceedings of the General Assembly or any 
branch of government, and no law shall ever be made to restrain the 
right thereof. Every person may freely and fully speak, write, and 
print on any subject, being responsible for the abuse of that liberty. 

Sec. 9. In prosecutions for the publication of papers investigating 
the official conduct of officers or men in a public capacity, or where 
the matter published is proper for public information, the truth there- 
of may be given in evidence; and in all indictments for libel the jury 
shall have the right to determine the law and the facts, under the 
direction of the court, as in other cases. 

Sec. 10. The people shall be secure in their persons, houses, papers, 
and possessions, from unreasonable search and seizure; and no war- 
rant shall issue to search any place, or seize any person or thing, with- 
out describing them as nearly as may be, nor without probable cause 
supported by oath or affirmation. 

Sec. II. In all criminal prosecutions the accused has the right to be 
heard by himself and counsel ; to demand the nature and cause of the 
accusation against him ; to meet the witnesses face to face, and to 
have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor. He 
cannot be compelled to give evidence against himself, nor can he be 
deprived of his life, liberty, or property, unless by the judgment of 
his peers or the law of the land ; and in prosecutions by indictment 
or information, he shall have a speedy public trial by an impartial jury 
of the vicinage ; but the General Assembly mav provide by a general 
law for a change of venue in such prosecutions for both the defendant 
and the Commonwealth, the change to be made to the most convenient 
county in which a fair trial can be obtained. 

Sec. 12. No person, for an indictable offense, shall be proceeded 
against criminally by information, except iu cases arising in the land 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 229 

or naval forces, or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war 
or public danger, or by leave of court for oppression or misdemeanor 
in office. 

Sec. 13. No person shall, for the same offense, be twice put in jeop- 
ardy of his life or limb, nor shall any man's property be taken or 
applied to public use without the consent of his representatives, and 
without just compensation being previously made to him. 

Sec. 14. All courts shall be open, and every person, for an injury 
done him in his lands, goods, person, or reputation, shall have remedy 
by due course of law, and right and justice administered without sale, 
denial, or delay. 

Sec. 15. No power to suspend laws shall be exercised, unless by 
the General Assembly or its authority. 

Sec. 16. All prisoners shall be bailable by sufficient securities, un- 
less for capital offenses, when the proof is evident or the presumption 
great ; and the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be sus- 
pended, unless when, in case of rebellion or invasion, the public safety 
may require it. 

Sec. 17. Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines 
imposed, nor cruel punishment inflicted. 

Sec. 18. The person of a debtor, where there is not strong pre- 
sumption of fraud, shall not be continued in prison after delivering 
up his estate for the benefit of his creditors in such manner as shall be 
prescribed by law. 

Sec. 19. No ex post facto law, nor any law impairing the obligation 
of contracts, shall be enacted. 

Sec. 20. No person shall be attainted of treason or felony by the 
General Assembly, and no attainder shall work corruption of blood, 
nor, except during the life of the offender, forfeiture of estate to the 
Commonwealth. 

Sec. 21. The estate of such persons as shall destroy their own lives 
shall descend or vest as in cases of natural death ; and if any person 
shall be killed by casualty, there shall be no forfeiture by reason 
thereof. 

Sec, 22. No standing army shall, in time of peace, be maintained 
without the consent of the General Assembly ; and the military shall, 
in all cases and at all times, be in strict subordination to the civil 
power ; nor shall any soldier, in time of peace, be quartered in any 
house without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, except in 
a manner prescribed by law. 

Sec. 23. The General Assembly shall not grant any title of nobility 
or hereditary distinction, nor create any office the appointment of 
which shall be for a longer time than a term of years. 

Sec. 24. Emigration from the State shall not be prohibited. 

Sec. 25. Slavery and involuntary servitude in this State are forbid- 
den, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have 
been duly convicted. 

Sec. 26. To guard against transgression of the high powers which 
we have delegated, we declare that everything in this Bill of Rights is 
excepted out of the general powers of government, and shall forever 



230 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 

remain inviolate ; and all laws contrary thereto, or contrary to this 
Constitution, shall be void. 

Distribution of the Powers of Government. 

Sec. 27. The powers of the government of the Commonwealth of 
Kentucky shall be divided into three distinct departments, and each 
of them be confined to a separate body of magistracy : to wit, those 
which are legislative, to one ; those which are executive, to another ; 
and those which are judicial, to another. 

Sec. 28. No person, or collection of persons, being of one of those 
departments, shall exercise any power properly belonging to either of 
the others, except in the instances hereinafter expressly directed or 
permitted. 

Legislative Department. 

Sec. 29. The legislative power shall be vested in a House of Repre- 
sentatives and a Senate, which together shall be styled the " General 
Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky." 

Sec. 30. Members of the House of Representatives and senators 
elected at the August election in one thousand eight hundred and 
ninety-one, and senators then holding over, shall continue in office 
until and including the last day of December, one thousand eight 
hundred and ninety-three. Thereafter the term of office of representa- 
tives and senators shall begin upon the first day of January of the 
year succeeding their election. 

Sec. 31. At the general election in the year one thousand eight 
hundred and ninety-three one senator shall be elected in each sena- 
torial district, and one representative in each representative district. 
The senators then elected shall hold their offices, one-half for two 
years and one-half for four years, as shall be determined by lot at the 
first session of the General Assembly after their election, and the 
representatives shall hold their offices for two years. Every two years 
thereafter there shall be elected for four years one senator in each 
senatorial district in which the term of his predecessor in office will 
then expire, and in every representative district one representative for 
(two years. 

Sec. 32. No person shall be a representative who, at the time of 
his election, is not a citizen of Kentucky, has not attained the age of 
twenty-four years, and who has not resided in this State two years 
next preceding his election, and the last year thereof in the county, 
town, or city for which he may be chosen. No person shall be a sen- 
ator who, at the time of his election, is not a citizen of Kentucky, 
has not attained the age of thirty years, and has not resided in this 
State six years next preceding his election, and the last year thereof 
in the district for which he may be chosen. 

Sec. 33. The first General Assembly after the adoption of this Con- 
stitution shall divide the State into thirty-eic;ht senatorial districts, 
and one hundred representative districts, as nearly equal in popula- 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 23 1 

tion as may be without dividing any county, except where a county 
may include more than one district, which districts shall constitute the 
senatorial and representative districts for ten years. Not more than 
two counties shall be joined together to form a representative dis- 
trict : provided, in doing so, the principle requiring every district to 
be as nearly equal in population as may be shall not be violated. At 
the expiration of that time, the General Assembly shall then, and 
every ten years thereafter, redistrict the State according to this rule, 
and for the purposes expressed in this section. If, in making said 
districts, inequality of population should be unavoidable, any advan- 
tage resulting therefrom shall be given to districts having the largest 
territory. No part of a county shall be added to another county to 
make a district, and the counties forming a district shall be con- 
tiguous. 

Sec. 34. The House of Representatives shall choose its speaker 
and other officers, and the Senate shall have power to choose its 
officers, biennially. 

Sec. 35. The number of representatives shall be one hundred, and 
the number of senators thirty-eight. 

Sec. 36. The first General Assembly, the members of which shall 
be elected under this Constitution, shall meet on the first Tuesday 
after the first Monday in January, eighteen hundred and ninety-four, 
and thereafter the General Assembly shall meet on the same day 
every second year, and its sessions shall be held at the seat of gov- 
ernment, except in case of war, insurrection, or pestilence, when it 
may, by proclamation of the governor, assemble, for the time being, 
elsewhere. 

Sec. 37. Not less than a majority of the members of each House 
of th^ General Assembly shall constitute a quorum to do business ; 
but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day, and shall be 
authorized by law to compel the attendance of absent members in 
such manner and under such penalties as may be prescribed by law. 

Sec. 38. Each House of the General Assembly shall judge of the 
qualifications, elections, and returns of its members, but a contested 
election shall be determined in such manner as shall be directed by 
law. 

Sec. 39. Each House of the General Assembly may determine the 
rules of its proceedings, punish a member for disorderly behavior, 
and, with the concurrence of two-thirds, expel a member, but not a 
second time for the same cause, and may punish for contempt any 
person who refuses to attend as a witness, or to bring any paper 
proper to be used as evidence before the General Assembly or either 
House thereof, or a committee of either, or to testify concerning any 
matter which may be a proper subject of inquiry by the General 
Assembly, or offers or gives a bribe to a member of the General 
Assembly, or attempts by other corrupt means or device to control or 
influence a member to cast his vote or withhold the same. The pun- 
ishment and mode of proceeding for contempt in such cases shall be 
prescribed by law, but the term of imprisonment in any such case 
shall not extend beyond the session of the General Assembly. 



232 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 

Sec. 40. Each House of the General Assembly shall keep and 
publish daily a journal of its proceedings ; and the yeas and nays of 
the members on any question shall, at the desire of any two of the 
members elected, be entered on the journal. 

Sec. 41. Neither House, during the session of the General Assem- 
bly, shall, without the consent of the other, adjourn for more than 
three days, nor to any other place than that in which it may be sitting. 

Sec. 42. The members of the General Assembly shall severally 
receive from the State treasury compensation for their services, which 
shall be five dollars a day during their attendance on, and fifteen 
cents per mile for the necessary travel in going to and leturning from, 
the sessions of their respective Houses : provided the same may be 
changed by law ; but no change shall take effect during the session at 
which it is made ; nor shall a session of the General Assembly con- 
tinue beyond sixty legislative days, exclusive of Sundays and legal 
holidays ; but this limitation as to length of session shall not apply to 
the first session held under this Constitution, nor to the Senate when 
sitting as a court of impeachment. A legislative day shall be con- 
strued to mean a calendar day. 

Sec. 43. The members of the General Assembly shall, in all cases 
except treason, felony, breach or surety of the peace, be privileged 
from arrest during their attendance on the sessions of their respective 
Houses, and in going to and returning from the same ; and for any 
speech or debate in either House they shall not be questioned in any 
other place. 

Sec. 44. No senator or representative shall, during the term for 
which he was elected, nor for one year thereafter, be appointed or 
elected to any civil office of profit in this Commonwealth, which shall 
have been created, or the emoluments of which shall have been 
increased, during the said term, except to such offices as may be filled 
by the election of the people. 

Sec. 45. No person who may have been a collector of taxes or 
public moneys for the Commonwealth, or for any county, city, town, 
or district, or the assistant or deputy of such collector, shall be 
eligible to the General Assembly, unless he shall have obtained a 
quietus six months before the election for the amount of such 
collection, and for all public moneys for which he may have been 
responsible. 

Sec. 46. No bill shall be considered for final passage, unless the 
same has been reported by a committee, and printed for the use of 
the members. Every bill shall be read at length on three different 
days in each House, but the second and third readings may be dis- 
pensed with by a majority of all the members elected to the House in 
which the bill is pending. But whenever a committee refuses or fails 
to report a bill submitted to it in a reasonable time, the same may be 
called up by any member, and be considered in the same manner it 
would have been considered if it had been reported. No bill shall 
become a law unless, on its final passage, it receives the votes of at 
least two-fifths of the members elected to each House, and a majority 
of the members voting, the vote to be taken by yeas and nays and en- 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 233 

tered in the journal : provided any act or resolution for the appropri- 
ation of money or the creation of debt shall, on its final passage, receive 
the votes of a majority of all the members elected to each House. 

Sec. 47. All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House 
of Representatives, but the Senate may propose amendments thereto : 
provided no new matter shall be introduced, under color of amend- 
ment, which does not relate to raising revenue. 

Sec. 48. The General Assembly shall have no power to enact laws 
to diminish the resources of tlie sinking fund as now established by 
law until the debt of the Commonwealth be paid, but may enact laws 
to increase them ; and the whole resources of said fund, from year to 
year, shall be sacredly set apart, and applied to the payment of the in- 
terest and principal of the State debt, and to no other use or purpose 
until the whole debt of the State is fully satisfied. 

Sec. 49. The General Assembly may contract debts to meet casual 
deficits or failures in the revenue ; but such debts, direct or contingent 
singly or in the aggregate, shall not at any time exceed five hundred 
thousand dollars, and the moneys arising from loans creating such 
debts shall be applied only to the purpose or purposes for which they 
were obtained, or to repay such debts : provided the General Assembly 
may contract debts to repel invasion, suppress insurrection, or, if hos- 
tilities are threatened, provide for the public defense. 

Sec. 50. No act of the General Assembly shall authorize any debt 
to be contracted on behalf of the Commonwealth except for the pur- 
poses mentioned in section forty-nine, unless provision be made therein 
to levy and collect an annual tax sufficient to pay the interest stipu- 
lated, and to discharge the debt within thirty years ; nor shall such act 
take effect until it shall have been submitted to the people at a general 
election, and shall have received a majority of all the votes cast for 
and against it : provided the General Assembly may contract debts by 
borrowing money to pay any part of the debt of the State, without 
submission to the people, and without making provision in the act 
authorizing the same for a tax to discharge the debt so contracted 
or the interest thereon. 

Sec. 51- No law enacted by the General Assembly shall relate to 
more than one subject, and that shall be expressed in the title and 
no law shall be revised, amended, or the provisions thereof extended 
or conferred by reference to its title only ; but so much thereof as is 
revised, amended, extended, or conferred shall be reenacted and 
published at length. 

Sec. 52. The General Assembly shall have no power to release 
extinguish, or authorize the releasing or extinguishing, in whole or in 
part, the indebtedness or liability of any corporation or individual to 
this Commonwealth, or to any county or municipality thereof. 
^ Sec. 53. The General Assembly shall provide by law for monthly 
mvestigations into the accounts of the treasurer and auditor of public 
accounts, and the result of these investigations shall be reported to the 
governor, and these reports shall be semi-annually published in two 
newspapers of general circulation in the State. The reports received 
by the governor shall, at the beginning of each session, be transmitted 



234 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 

by him to the General Assembly for scrutiny and appropriate 
action. 

Sec. 54. The General Assembly shall have no power to limit the 
amount to be recovered for injuries resulting in death, or for injuries 
to person or property. 

Sec. 55. No act, except general appropriation bills, shall become a 
law until ninety days after the adjournment of the session at which it 
was passed, except in cases of emergency, when, by the concurrence 
of a majority of the members elected to each House of the General 
Assembly, by a yea and nay vote entered upon their journals, an act 
may become a law when approved by the governor ; but the reasons 
for the emergency that justifies this action must be set out at length 
in the journal of each House. 

Sec. 56. No bill shall become a law until the same shall have been 
signed by the presiding officer of each of the two Houses in open ses- 
sion ; and before such officer shall have affixed his signature to any 
bill, he shall suspend all other business, declare that such bill will now 
be read, and that he will sign the same, to the end that it may become 
a law. The bill shall then be read at length and compared ; and, if 
correctly enrolled, he shall, in presence of the House in open session, 
and before any other business is entertained, affix his signature, which 
fact shall be noted in the journal, and the bill immediately sent to 
the other House. When it reaches the other House, the presiding 
officer thereof shall immediately suspend all other business, announce 
the reception of the bill, and the same proceeding shall thereupon be 
observed in every respect as in the House in which it was first signed. 
And thereupon the clerk of the latter House shall immediately pre- 
sent the same to the governor for his signature and approval. 

Sec. 57. A member who has a personal or private interest in any 
measure or bill proposed or pending before the General Assembly, 
shall disclose the fact to the House of which he is a member, and 
shall not vote thereon upon pain of expulsion. 

Sec. 58. The General Assembly shall neither audit nor allow any 
private claim against the Commonwealth, except for expenses incurred 
during the session at which the same was allowed, but may appropriate 
money to pay such claim as shall have been audited and allowed ac- 
cording to law. 

Local and Special Legislation. 

Sec. 59. The General Assembly shall not pass local or special acts 
concerning any of the following subjects, or for any of the following 
purposes : namely, — 

1. To regulate the jurisdiction, or the practice, or the circuits of 
courts of justice, or the rights, powers, duties, or compensation of the 
officers thereof ; but the practice in circuit courts in continuous ses- 
sion may, by a general law, be made different from the practice of 
circuit courts held in terms. 

2. To regulate the summoning, impaneling, or compensation of 
grand or petit jurors. 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 235 

3. To provide for changes of venue in civil or criminal causes. 

4. To regulate the punishment of crimes and misdemeanors, or to 
remit fines, penalties, or forfeitures. 

5. To regulate the limitation of civil or criminal causes. 

6. To affect the estate of cestiiis que trust, decedents, infants, or 
other persons under disabilities, or to authorize any such persons to 
sell, lease, encumber, or dispose of their property. 

7. To declare any person of age, or to relieve an infant or feme 
covert of disability, or to enable him to do acts allowed only to adults 
not under disabilities. 

8. To change the law of descent, distribution, or succession, 
g. To authorize the adoption or legitimation of children. 

10. To grant divorces. 

11. To change the name of persons. 

12. To give effect to invalid deeds, wills, or other instruments. 

13. To legalize, except as against the Commonwealth, the unau- 
thorized or invalid act of any officer or public agent of the Common- 
wealth, or of any city, county, or municipality thereof. 

14. To refund money legally paid into the State treasury. 

15. To authorize or to regulate the levy, the assessment, or the col- 
lection of taxes, or to give any indulgence or discharge to any assessor 
or collector of taxes, or to his sureties. 

16. To authorize the opening, altering, maintaining, or vacating 
roads, highways, streets, alleys, town plats, cemeteries, graveyards, or 
public grounds not owned by the Commonwealth. 

17. To grant a charter to any corporation, or to amend the charter 
of any existing corporation ; to license companies or persons to own 
or operate ferries, bridges, roads, or turnpikes ; to declare streams 
navigable, or to authorize the construction of booms or dams therein, 
or to remove obstructions therefrom ; to affect toll-gates or to regu- 
late tolls ; to regulate fencing or the running at large of stock. 

18. To create, increase, or decrease fees, percentages, or allow- 
ances to public officers, or to extend the time for the collection thereof, 
or to authorize officers to appoint deputies. 

19. To give any person or corporation the right to lay a railroad 
track or tramway, or to amend existing charters for such purposes. 

20. To provide for conducting elections, or for designating the 
places of voting, or changing the boundaries of wards, precincts, or 
districts, except when new counties may be created. 

21. To regulate the rate of interest. 

22. To authorize the creation, extension, enforcement, impair- 
ment, or release of liens. 

23. To provide for the protection of game and fish. 

24. To regulate labor, trade, mining, or manufacturing. 

25. To provide for the management of common schools. 

26. To locate or change a county seat. 

27. To provide a means of taking the sense of the people of any 
city, town, district, precinct, or county, whether they wish to author- 
ize, regulate, or prohibit therein the sale of vinous, spirituous, or malt 
liquors, or alter the liquor laws. 



236 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 

28. Restoring to citizenship persons convicted of infamous crimes, 

29. In all other cases where a general law can be made applica- 
ble, no special law shall be enacted. 

Sec. 60. The General Assembly shall not indirectly enact any 
special or local act by the repeal in part of a general act, or by ex- 
empting from the operation of a general act any city, town, district, 
or county ; but laws repealing local or special acts may be enacted. 
No law shall be enacted granting powers or privileges in any case 
;where the granting of such powers or privileges shall have been pro- 
vided for by a general law, nor where the courts have jurisdiction to 
grant the same or to give the relief asked for. No law, except such 
as relates to the sale, loan, or gift of vinous, spirituous, or malt 
liquors, bridges, turnpikes or other public roads, public buildings or 
improvements, fencing, running at large of stock, matters pertaining 
to common schools, paupers, and the regulation by counties, cities, 
towns, or other municipalities, of their local affairs, shall be enacted 
to take effect upon the approval of any other authority than the Gen- 
eral Assembly, unless otherwise expressly provided in this Constitu- 
tion. 

Sec. 61. The General Assembly shall by general law provide a 
means whereby the sense of the people of any county, city, town, dis- 
trict, or precinct may be taken, as to whether or not spirituous, vin- 
ous, or malt liquors shall be sold, bartered, or loaned therein, or the 
sale thereof regulated ; but nothing herein shall be construed to in- 
terfere with or to repeal any law in force relating to the sale or gift 
of such liquors. All elections on this question may be held on a day 
other than the regular election days. 

Sec. 62. The style of the laws of this Commonwealth shall be as 
follows: ''Be it enacted by the General Asse?7ibly of the Common- 
wealth of Kentucky." 

Counties and County Seats. 

Sec. 63. No new county shall be created by the General Assem- 
bly which will reduce the county or counties, or either of them, from 
which it shall be taken, to less area than four hundred square miles ; 
nor shall any county be formed of less area ; nor shall any boundary 
line thereof pass within less than ten miles of any county seat of the 
county or counties proposed to be divided. Nothing contained herein 
shall prevent the General Assembly from aboHshing any county. 

Sec. 64. No county shall be divided, or have any part stricken 
therefrom, except in the formation of new counties, without submit- 
ting the question to a vote of the people of the county, nor unless the 
majority of all the legal voters of the county voting on the question 
shall vote for the same. The county seat of no county as now located, 
or as may hereafter be located, shall be moved, except upon a vote of 
two-thirds of those voting ; nor shall any new county be established 
which will reduce any county to less than twelve thousand inhabit- 
ants, nor shall any county be created containing a less population. 

Sec. 65. There shall be no territory stricken from any county un- 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 237 

less a majority of the voters living in such territory shall petition for 
such division ; but the portion so stricken off and added to another 
county, or formed in whole or in part into a new county, shall be 
bound for its proportion of the indebtedness of the county from which 
it has been taken. 

Impeachments. 

Sec. 66. The House of Representatives shall have the sole power 
of impeachment. 

_ Sec. 67. All impeachments shall be tried by the Senate. When 
sitting for that purpose, the senators shall be upon oath or affirmation. 
No person shall be convicted without the concurrence of two-thirds 
of the senators present. 

Sec. 68. The governor and all civil officers shall be liable to im- 
peachment for any misdemeanors in office ; but judgment in such 
cases shall not extend further than removal from office, and disquali- 
fication to hold any office of honor, trust, or profit under this Com- 
monwealth ; but the party convicted shall, nevertheless, be subject 
and liable to indictment, trial, and punishment bylaw. 

The Executive Department. 
Officers for the State at Large. 

Sec. 69. The supreme executive power of the Commonwealth 
shall be vested in a chief magistrate, who shall be styled the " Gov- 
ernor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky." 

Sec. 70. He shall be elected for the term of four years by the 
qualified voters of the State. The person having the highest number 
of votes shall be governor ; but if two or more shall be equal and 
highest in votes, the election shall be determined by lot in such man- 
ner as the General Assembly may direct. 

Sec. 71. He shall be ineligible for the succeeding four years after 
the expiration of the term for which he shall have been elected. 

_ Sec. 72 He shall be at least thirty years of age, and have been a 
citizen and a resident of Kentucky for at least six years next preced- 
ing his election. 

Sec. 73. He shall commence the execution of the duties of his 
office on the fifth Tuesday succeeding his election, and shall continue 
in the execution thereof until his successor shall have qualified. 

Sec. 1^. He shall at stated times receive for his services a compen- 
sation to be fixed by law. 

Sec. 75. He shall be commander-in-chief of the army and navy of 
this Commonwealth, and of the militia thereof, except when they shall 
be called into the service of the United States ; but he shall not com- 
mand personally in the field, unless advised so to do by a resolution 
of the General Assembly. 

Sec. 76. He shall have the power, except as otherwise provided 
in this Constitution, to fill vacancies by granting commissions, which 



238 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 

shall expire when such vacancies shall have been filled according to 
the provisions of this Constitution. 

Sec. 77. He shall have power to remit fines and forfeitures, com- 
mute sentences, grant reprieves and pardons, except in case of 
impeachment ; and he shall file with each application therefor a state- 
ment of the reasons for his decision thereon, which application and 
statement shall always be open to public inspection. In cases of 
treason, he shall have power to grant reprieves until the end of the 
next session of the General Assembly, in which the power of par- 
doning shall be vested ; but he shall have no power to remit the fees 
of the clerk, sheriff, or Commonwealth's attorney in penal or criminal 
cases. 

Sec. 78. He may require information in writing from the officers 
of the Executive Department upon any subject relating to the duties 
of their respective offices. 

Sec. 79. He shall from time to time give to the General Assembly 
information of the state of the Commonwealth, and recommend to 
their consideration such measures as he may deem expedient. 

Sec. 80. He may, on extraordinary occasions, convene the General 
Assembly at the seat of government, or at a different place, if that 
should have become dangerous from an enemy or from contagious 
diseases. In case of disagreement between the two Houses with re- 
spect to the time of adjournment, he may adjourn them to such 
time as he shall think proper, not exceeding four months. When 
he shall convene the General Assembly, it shall be by proclama- 
tion, stating the subjects to be considered, and no others shall be 
considered. 

Sec. 81. He shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed. 

Sec. 82. A lieutenant-governor shall be chosen at every regular 
election for governor, in the same manner, to continue in office for 
the same time, and possess the same qualifications, as the governor. 
He shall be ineligible to the office of lieutenant-governor for the suc- 
ceeding four years after the expiration of the term for which he shall 
have been elected. 

Sec. 83. He shall, by virtue of his office, be president of the 
Senate, have a right, when in committee of the whole, to debate and 
vote on all subjects, and, when the Senate is equally divided, to give 
the casting vote. 

Sec. 84. Should the governor be impeached, and removed from 
office, die, refuse to qualify, resign, be absent from the State, or be 
from any cause unable to discharge the duties of his office, the lieu- 
tenant-governor shall exercise all the power and authority appertaining 
to the office of governor until another be duly elected and qualified, 
or the governor shall return or be able to discharge the duties of his 
office. On the trial of the governor, the lieutenant-governor shall 
not act as president of the Senate or take part in the proceedings, 
but the chief justice of the Court of Appeals shall preside during the 
trial. 

Sec. 85. A president /r^ tempore of the Senate shall be elected by 
each Senate as soon after its organization as possible, the lieutenant 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 239 

governor vacating his seat as president of the Senate until such elec- 
tion shall be made ; and as often as there is a vacancy in the office of 
president pro tempore, another president pro tempore of the Senate 
shall be elected by the Senate, if in session. And if, during the 
vacancy of the office of governor, the lieutenant-governor shall be 
impeached, and removed from office, refuse to qualify, resign, die, or 
be absent from the State, the \iXQ.%\(\Qn\. pro tempore of the Senate 
shall in like manner administer the government : provided, whenever 
a vacancy shall occur in the office of governor before the first two 
years of the term shall have expired, a new election for governor 
shall take place to fill such vacancy. 

Sec. 86. The lieutenant-governor, or president pro tempore of the 
Senate, while he acts as president of the Senate, shall receive for his 
services the same compensation which shall, for the same period, be 
allowed for the speaker of the House of Representatives ; and during 
the time he administers the government as governor, he shall receive 
the same compensation which the governor would have received had 
he been employed in the duties of his office. 

Sec. 87. If the lieutenant-governor shall be called upon to admin- 
ister the government, and shall, while in such administration, resign, 
die, or be absent from the State during the recess of the General 
Assembly, if there be no president pro te??ipore of the Senate, it shall 
be the duty of the secretary of state for the time being to convene 
the Senate for the purpose of choosing a president; and until a presi- 
dent is chosen, the secretary of state shall administer the government. 
If there be no secretary of state to perform the duties devolved upon 
him by this section, or in case that officer be absent from the State, 
then the attorney-general for the time being shall convene the Sen- 
ate for the purpose of choosing a president, and shall administer the 
government until a president is chosen. 

Sec. 88. Every bill which shall have passed the two Houses shall 
be presented to the governor. If he approve, he shall sign it ; but if 
not, he shall return it, with his objections, to the House in which it 
originated, which shall enter the objections in full upon its journal, 
and proceed to reconsider it. If, after such reconsideration, a ma- 
jority of all the members elected to that House shall agree to pass 
the bill, it shall be sent, with the objections, to the other House, by 
which it shall likewise be considered, and, if approved by a majority of 
all the members elected to that House, it shall be a law ; but iu such 
case the votes of both Houses shall be determined by yeas and nays, 
and the names of the members voting for and against the bill shall 
be entered upon the journal of each House respectively. If any bill 
shall not be returned by the governor within ten days (Sundays ex- 
cepted) after it shall have been presented to him, it shall be a law in 
like manner as if he had signed it, unless the General Assembly, by 
their adjournment, prevent its return, in which case it shall be a law, 
unless disapproved by him within ten days after the adjournment, in 
which case his veto message shall be spread upon the register kept 
by the secretary of state. The governor shall have power to disap- 
prove any part or parts of appropriation bills embracing distinct 



240 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 

items, and the part or parts disapproved shall not become a law unless 
reconsidered and passed, as in case of a bill. 

Sec. 8g. Every order, resolution, or vote in which the concurrence 
of both Houses may be necessary, except on a question of adjourn- 
ment, or as otherwise provided in this Constitution, shall be pre- 
sented to the governor, and, before it shall take effect, be approved 
by him, or, being disapproved, shall be repassed by a majority of the 
members elected to both Houses, according to the rules and limita- 
tions prescribed in case of a bill. 

Sec. qo. Contested elections for governor and lieutenant-governor 
shall be determined by both Houses of the General Assembly, accord- 
ing to such regulations as may be established by law. 

Sec. 91. A treasurer, auditor of public accounts, register of the 
land office, commissioner of agriculture, labor, and statistics, secretary 
of state, attorney-general, and superintendent of public instruction, 
shall be elected by the qualified voters of the State at the same time 
the governor is elected, for the term of four years, each of whom 
shall be at least thirty years of age at the time of his election, and 
shall have been a resident citizen of the State at least two years next 
before his election. The duties of all these officers shall be such as 
may be prescribed by law ; and the secretary of state shall keep a fair 
register of and attest all the official acts of the governor, and shall, 
when required, lay the same, and all papers, minutes, and vouchers 
relative thereto, before either House of the General Assembly. The 
officers named in this section shall enter upon the discharge of their 
duties the first Monday in January after their election, and shall hold 
their offices until their successors are elected and qualified. 

Sec. 92. The attorney-general shall have been a practicing lawyer 
eight years before his election. 

Sec. 93. The treasurer, auditor of public accounts, secretary of 
state, commissioner of agriculture, labor, and statistics, attorney-gen- 
eral, superintendent of public instruction, and register of the land 
office shall be ineligible to reelection for the succeeding four years 
after the expiration of the term for which they shall have been 
elected. The duties and responsibilities of these officers shall be pre- 
scribed by law, and all fees collected by any of said officers shall be 
covered into the treasury. Inferior State officers, not specifically 
provided for in this Constitution, -may be appointed or elected, in 
such manner as may be prescribed by law, for a term not exceeding 
four years, and until their successors are appointed or elected and 
qualified. 

Sec. 94. The General Assembly may provide for the abolishment 
of the office of the register of the land office, to take effect at the 
end of any term, and shall provide by law for the custody and preser- 
vation of the papers and records of said office, if the same be 
abolished. 

Sec. 95. The election under this Constitution for governor, lieu- 
tenant-governor, treasurer, auditor of public accounts, register of the 
land office, attorney-general, secretary of state, superintendent of 
public instruction, and commissioner of agriculture, labor, and statis- 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 



241 



tics, shall be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in 
November, eighteen hundred and ninety- five, and the same day every 
four years thereafter. ^ 

Sec. g6. All the officers mentioned in section ninety-five shall be 
paid for their services by salary, and not otherwise. 

Officers for Districts and Counties. 

Sec. 97. At the general election in eighteen hundred and ninety- 
two there shall be elected in each circuit court district a Common- 
wea th s attorney, and in each county a clerk of the circuit court, who 
shall enter upon the discharge of the duties of their respective offices 
T • n?''^^ Monday in January after their election, and shall hold 
their offices five years, and until their successors are elected and 
qualified. In the year eighteen hundred and ninety-seven, and every 
six years thereafter, there shall be an election in each county for a 
circuit court clerk, and for a Commonwealth's attorney in each circuit 
court district, unless that office be abolished, who shall hold their 
respective offices for six years from the first Monday in January after 
their election, and until the election and qualification of their sue- 

r»r*ccr\rc 



cessors. 



Sec. 98. The compensation of the Commonwealth's attorney shall 
be by salary and such percentage of fines and forfeitures as may be 
fixed by law, and such salary shall be uniform in so far as the same 
shall be paid out of the State treasury, and not to exceed the sum of 
five hundred dollars per annum ; but any county may make addi- 
tional compensation, to be paid by said county. Should any per- 
centage of fines and forfeitures be allowed by law, it shall not be paid 
except upon such proportion of the fines and forfeitures as have been 
collected and paid into the State treasury, and not until -so collected 
and paid. 

Sec. 99 There shall be elected in eighteen hundred and ninety, 
tour in each county a judge of the county court, a county court clerk 
a county attorney, sheriff, jailer, coroner, surveyor, and assessor, and 
in each justice s district one justice of the peace and one constable, 
who ^hall enter upon the discharge of the duties of their offices on the 
first Monday in January after their election, and continue in office 
three years, and until the election and qualification of their succes- 
sors ; and in eighteen hundred and ninety-seven, and every four years 
thereafter there shall be an election in each county of the officers 
mentioned, who shall hold their offices four years (from the first 
Monday m January after their election), and until the election and 
qualification of their successors. The first election of sheriffs under 
this Constitution shall beheld in eighteen hundred and ninety-two. 
and the sheriffs then elected shall hold their offices two years, and 
until the election and qualification of their successors. The sheriffs 
now in office for their first term shall be eligible to reelection in 
eighteen hundred and ninety-two, and those elected in eighteen hun- 
dred and ninety-two for the first term shall be eligible to reelection 
in eighteen hundred and ninety-four, but thereafter no sheriff shaJl 



KENT. HIST.. — l6 



242 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 

be eligible to reelection or to act as deputy for the succeeding 
term. 

Sec. ioo. No person shall be eligible to the offices mentioned in 
sections ninety-seven and ninety-nine who is not at the time of his 
election twenty-four years of age (except clerks of county and circuit 
courts, who shall be twenty-one years of age), a citizen of Kentucky, 
and who has not resided in the State two years, and one year next 
preceding his election in the county and district in which he is a can- 
didate. No person shall be eligible to the office of Commonwealth's 
attorney unless he shall have been a licensed practicing lawyer four 
years. No person shall be eligible to the office of county attorney 
unless he shall have been a licensed practicing lawyer two years. No 
person shall be eligible to the office of clerk unless he shall have pro- 
cured from a judge of the Court of Appeals, or a judge of a circuit 
court, a certificate that he has been examined by the clerk of his 
court under his supervision, and that he is qualified for the office 
for which he is a candidate. 

Sec. ioi. Constables shall possess the same qualifications as sher- 
iffs, and their jurisdiction shall be coextensive with the counties in 
which they reside. Constables now in office shall continue in office 
until their successors are elected and qualified. 

Sec. I02. When a new county shall be created, officers for the 
same, to serve until the next regular election, shall be elected or 
appointed in such way and at such times as the General Assembly 
may prescribe. 

Sec. 103. The judges of county courts, clerks, sheriffs, surveyors, 
coroners, jailers, constables, and such other officers as the General 
Assembly may from time to time require, shall, before they enter 
upon the duties of their respective offices, and as often thereafter as 
may be deemed proper, give such bond and security as may be pre- 
scribed by law. 

Sec. 104. The General Assembly may abolish the office of assessor, 
and provide that the assessment of property shall be made by other 
officers ; but it shall have power to reestablish the office of assessor 
and prescribe his duties. No person shall be eligible to the office of 
assessor two consecutive terms. 

Sec. 105. The General Assembly may at any time consolidate the 
offices of jailer and sheriff in any county or counties, as it shall deem 
most expedient ; but, in the event such consolidation be made, the 
office of sheriff shall be retained, and the sheriff shall be required to 
perform the duties of jailer. 

Sec. 106. The fees of county officers shall be regulated by law. 
In counties or cities having a population of seventy-five thousand or 
more, the clerks of the respective courts thereof (except the clerk of 
the city court), the marshals, the sheriffs, and the jailers shall be 
paid out of the State treasury, by salary to be fixed by law, the 
salaries of said officers and of their deputies and necessary office 
expenses not to exceed seventy-five per centum of the fees collected 
by said officers respectively, and paid into the treasury. 

Sec. 107. The General Assembly may provide for the election or 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 243 

appointment, for a term not exceeding four years, of such other 
county or district ministerial and executive officers as may from time 
to time be necessary. 

Sec. 108. The General Assembly may, at any time after the expira- 
tion of six years from the adoption of this Constitution, abolish the 
office of Commonwealth's attorney, to take effect upon the expiration 
of the terms of the incumbents, in which event the duties of said 
office shall be discharged by the county attorneys. 

The Judicial Department. 

Sec. 109, The judicial power of the Commonwealth, both as to 
matters of law and equity, shall be vested in the Senate when sitting 
as a court of impeachment, and one Supreme Court (to be styled the 
Court of Appeals), and the courts established by this Constitution. 

Court of Appeals. 

Sec. iio. The Court of Appeals shall have appellate jurisdiction 
only, which shall be coextensive with the State, under such restric- 
tions and regulations, not repugnant to this Constitution, as may from 
time to time be prescribed by law. Said court shall have power to 
issue such writs as may be necessary to give it a general control of 
inferior jurisdictions. 

Sec. III. The Court of Appeals shall be held at the seat of govern- 
ment ; but if that shall become dangerous, in case of war, insurrection, 
or pestilence, it may adjourn to meet and transact its business at such 
other place in the State as it may deem expedient for the time being. 

Sec. 112. The judges of the Court of Appeals shall severally hold 
their offices for the term of eight years, commencing on the first 
Monday in January next succeeding their respective elections, and 
until their several successors are qualified, subject to the conditions 
hereinafter prescribed. For any reasonable cause the governor shall 
remove them, or any one or more of them, on the address of two- 
thirds of each House of the General Assembly. The cause or causes 
for which said removal shall be required shall be stated at length in 
such address and in the journal of each House. They shall at stated 
times receive for their services an adequate compensation, to be fixed 
by law. 

Sec. 113. The Court of Appeals shall, after eighteen hundred and 
ninety-four, consist of not less than five nor more than seven judges. 
They shall severally, by virtue of their office, be conservators of the 
peace throughout the State, and shall be commissioned by the governor. 

Sec. 114. No person shall be eligible to election as a judge of the 
Court of Appeals who is not a citizen of Kentucky, and has not 
resided in this State five years, and in the district in which he is 
elected two years, next preceding his election, and who is less than 
thirty-five years of age, and has not been a practicing lawyer eight 
years, or whose services upon the bench of a circuit court or court of 



244 CONSriTUTION OF KENTUCKY 

similar jurisdiction, when added to the time he may have practiced 
law, shall not be equal to eight years. 

Sec. 115. The present judges of the Court of Appeals shall hold 
their offices until their respective terms expire, and until their several 
successors shall be qualified ; and at the regular election next pre- 
ceding the expiration of the term of each of the present judges, his 
successor shall be elected. The General Assembly shall, before the 
regular election in eighteen hundred and ninety-four, provide for the 
election of such judges of the Court of Appeals, not less than five nor 
exceeding seven, as may be necessary ; and if less than seven judges 
be provided for, the General Assembly may at any time increase the 
number to seven. 

Sec. 116. The judges of the Court of Appeals shall be elected by 
districts. The General Assembly shall, before the regular election in 
eighteen hundred and ninety-four, divide the State, by counties, into 
as many districts, as nearly equal in population and as compact in 
form as possible, as it may provide shall be the number of judges of 
the Court of Appeals ; and it may, every ten years thereafter, or when 
the number of judges requires it, redistrict the State in like manner. 
Upon the creation of new or additional districts, the General Assem- 
bly shall designate the year in which the first election for a judge of 
the Court of Appeals shall be held in each district, so that not more 
than the number of judges provided for shall be elected, and that no 
judge may be deprived of his office until the expiration of the term 
for which he was elected. 

Sec. 117. A majority of the judges of the Court of Appeals shall 
constitute a quorum for the transaction of business, but in the event 
as many as two decline, on account of interest or for other reason, to 
preside in the trial of any cause, the governor, on t^iat fact being cer- 
tified to h'm by the chief justice, shall appoint to try the particular 
cause a sufficient number of judges to constitute a full court. The 
judges so appointed shall possess the qualifications prescribed for 
judges of the Court of Appeals, and receive the same compensation, 
proportioned to the length of service. 

Sec. 118. The judge longest in commission as judge of the Court 
of Appeals shall be chief justice, and if the term of service of two or 
more judges be the same, they shall determine by lot which of their 
number shall be chief justice. The court sliall prescribe by rule that 
petitions for rehearing shall be considered by a judge who did not 
deliver the opinion in the case ; and the ccurt, if composed of seven 
judges, shall divide itself into sections for the transaction of business, 
if, in the judgment of the court, such arrangement is necessary. 

Sec. 119. The Superior Court shall continue until the terms of the 
present judges of said court expire ; nnd upon the expiration of their 
terms, all causes pending before the Superior Court shall be trans- 
ferred to the Court of Appeals, and be determined by it. 

Sec. 120. The present clerk of the Court of Appeals shall serve 
until the expiration of the term for which he was elected, and until 
his successor is elected and qualified. At the election in the year 
eighteen hundred and ninety-seven there shall be elected by the 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 245 

qualified voters of the State a clerk of the Court of Appeals, who shall 
take his office the first Monday in September, eighteen hundred 
and ninety-eight, and who shall hold his office until the regular 
election in nineteen hundred and three, and until his successor shall 
be elected and qualified. In nineteen hundred and three, and there- 
after, the clerk of the Court of Appeals shall be elected at the same 
time as the governor, for the term of four years ; and the said clerk 
shall take his office on the first Monday in January following his 
election, and shall hold his office until his successor is elected and 
qualified. The clerk shall be ineligible for the succeeding term. 

Sec. 121. No person shall be eligible to the office of clerk of the 
Court of Appeals unless he is a citizen of Kentucky, a resident 
thereof for two years next preceding his election, of the age of twenty- 
one years, and have a certificate from a judge of the Court of Appeals 
that he has been examined by him, or by the clerk of his court under 
his supervision, and that he is qualified for the office. 

Sec. 122. Should a vacancy occur in the office of the clerk of the 
Court of Appeals, or should the clerk be under charges, the Court of 
Appeals shall have power to appoint a clerk until the vacancy be 
filled as provided in this Constitution, or until the clerk be acquitted. 

Sec. 123. The style of process shall be "The Commonwealth of 
Kentucky." All prosecutions shall be carried on in the name and by 
the authority of the "Commonwealth of Kentucky," and conclude 
against the peace and dignity of the same. 

Sec. 124. The clerks of the Court of Appeals, circuit and county 
courts, shall be removable from office by the Court of Appeals, upon 
information and good cause shown. The court shall be judge of the 
facts as well as the law. Two-thirds of the members present must 
concur in the sentence. 

Circuit Courts. 

Sec. 125. A circuit court shall be established in each county now 
existing, or which mny hereafter be created, in this Commonwealth, 

Sec. 126. The jurisdiction of said court shall be and remain as 
now established, hereby giving to the General Assembly the power to 
change it. 

Sec. 127. The right to appeal or sue out a writ of error shall re- 
main as it now exists until altered by law, hereby giving to the Gen- 
eral Assembly the power to change or modify said right. 

Sec. 128. At its first session after the adoption of this Constitution, 
the General Assembly, having due regard to territory, business, and 
population, shall divide the State into a sufficient nurnber of judicial 
districts to carry into effect the provisions of this Constitution con- 
cerning circuit courts. In making such apportionment, no county shall 
be divided ; and the number of said districts, excluding those in coun- 
ties having a population of one hundred and fifty thousand, shall not 
exceed one district for each sixty thousand of the population of the 
entire State, 

Sec. 129. The General Assembly shall, at the same time the judi- 



246 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 

cial districts are laid off, direct elections to be held in each district to 
elect a judge therein. The first election of judges of the circuit courts 
under this Constitution shall take place at the annual election in the 
year eighteen hundred and ninety-two, and the judges then elected 
shall enter upon the discharge of the duties of their respective offices 
on the first Monday in January after their election, and hold their 
offices five years, and until their successors are elected and qualified. 
At the general election in eighteen hundred and ninety-seven, and 
every six years thereafter, there shall be an election for judges of the 
circuit courts, who shall hold their offices for six years from the first 
Monday in January succeeding their election. They shall be com- 
missioned by the governor, and continue in office until their successors 
shall have been qualified, but shall be removable in the same manner 
as the judges of the Court of Appeals. The removal of a judge from 
his district shall vacate his office. 

Sec. 130. No person shall be eligible as judge of the circuit court 
who is less than thirty-five years of age when elected, who is not a 
citizen of Kentucky, and a resident of the district in which he may be 
a candidate two years next preceding his election, and who has not 
been a practicing lawyer eight years. 

Sec. 131. There shall be at least three regular terms of circuit court 
held in each county every year. 

Sec. 132. The General Assembly when deemed necessary, may 
establish additional districts ; but the whole number of districts, ex- 
clusive of counties having a population of one hundred and fifty thou- 
sand, shall not exceed at any time one for every sixty thousand of 
population of the State according to the last enumeration. 

Sec. 133. The judges of the circuit court shall at stated times 
receive for their services an adequate compensation to be fixed by law, 
which shall be equal and uniform throughout the State, so far as the 
same shall be paid out of the State treasury. 

Sec. 134. The judicial districts of the State shall not be changed 
except at the first session after an enumeration, unless upon the estab- 
lishment of a new district. 1 
Sec. 135. No courts save those provided for in this Constitution', 
shall be established. 

Sec. 136. The General Assembly shall provide by law for holding 
circuit courts, when from any cause the judge shall fail to attend, or, 
if in attendance, cannot properly preside. 

Sec. 137. Each county having a population of one hundred and 
fifty thousand, or over, shall constitute a district, which shall be en- 
titled to four judges. Additional judges for said district may from 
time to time be authorized by the General Assembly, but not to exceed 
one judge for each increase of forty thousand of population in said 
county, to be ascertained by the last enumeration. Each of the judges 
in such a district shall hold a separate court, except when a general 
term may be held for the purpose of making rules of court, or as may 
be required by law : provided no general term shall have power to re- 
view any order, decision, or proceeding of any branch of the court in 
said district made in separate term. There shall be one clerk for 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 247 

such district, who shall be known as the clerk of the circuit court. 
Criminal causes shall be under the exclusive jurisdiction of some one 
branch of said court ; and all other litigation in said district, of which 
the circuit court may have jurisdiction, shall be distributed as equally 
as may be between the other branches thereof, in accordance with the 
rules of the court made in general term or as may be prescribed by 
law. 

Sec. 138. Each county having a city of twenty thousand inhabit- 
ants, and a population, including said city, of forty thousand or more, 
may consiitute a district ; and when its population reaches seventy-five 
thousand, the General Assembly may provide that it shall have an 
additional judge, and such district may have a Judge for each addi- 
tional fifty thousand population above one hundred thousand. And 
in such counties the General Assembly shall by proper laws direct in 
what manner the court shall be held and the business therein con- 
ducted. 

Quarterly Courts. 

Sec. 139. There shall be established in each county now existing. 
or which may be hereafter created, in this State, a court, to be styled 
the '* quarterly court," the jurisdiction of which shall be uniform 
throughout the State, and shall be regulated by a general law, and, 
until changed, shall be the same as that now vested by law in the 
quarterly courts of this Commonwealth. The judges of the county 
court shall be the judges of the quarterly courts. 

County Courts. 

Sec. 140. There shall be established in each county now existing, 
or which may be hereafter created, in this State, a court, to be styled 
the " county court," to consist of a judge, who shall be a conservator 
of the peace, and shall receive such compensation for his services as 
may be prescribed by law. He shall be commissioned by the gover- 
nor, and shall vacate his office by removal from the county in which 
he may have been e'ected. 

Sec. 141. The jurisdiction of the county court shall be uniform 
throughout the State, and shall be regulated by general law, and, until 
changed, shall be the same as now vested in the county courts of this 
State by law. 

Justices' Courts. 

Sec. 142. Each county now existing, or which may hereafter be 
created, in this State, shall be laid off into districts in such manner as 
the General Assembly may direct ; but no county shall have less than 
three nor more than eight districts, in each of which districts one jus- 
tice of the peace shall be elected as provided in section ninety-nine. 
The General Assembly shall make provisions for regulating the num- 
ber of said districts from time to time within the limits herein pre- 
scribed, and for fixing the boundaries thereof. The jurisdiction of 



248 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 



justices of tbe peace shall be coextensive with the county, and shall 
be equal and uniform throughout the State. Justices of the peace 
shall be conservators of the peace. They shall be commissioned by 
the governor, and shall vacate their ofifices by removal from the dis- 
tricts, respectively, in which they may have been elected. 



Police Courts. 

Sec. 143. A police court may be established in each city and town 
in this State, with jurisdiction in cases of violation of municipal ordi- 
nances and by-laws occurring within the corporate limits of the city or 
town in which it is established, and such criminal jurisdiction within 
the said limits as justices of the peace have. The said courts may be 
authorized to act as examining courts, but shall have no civil jurisdic- 
tion : provided, the General Assembly may confer civil jurisdiction on 
police courts in cities and towns of the fourth and fifth classes and in 
towns of the sixth class having a population of two hundred and fifty 
or more, which jurisdiction shall be uniform throughout the State, 
and not exceed that of justices of the peace. 

Fiscal Courts. 

Sec. 144. Counties shall have a fiscal court, which may consist of 
the judge of the county court and the justices of the peace, in which 
court the judge of the county court shall preside, if present ; or a 
county may have three commissioners, to be elected from the county 
at large, who, together with the judge of the county court, shall con- 
stitute the fiscal court. A majority of the members of said court shall 
constitute a court for the transaction of business ; but where, for 
county governmental purposes, a city is by law separated from the 
remainder of the county, such commissioners may be elected from the 
part of the county outside of such city. 

Suffrage and Elections. 

Sec. 145. Every male citizen of the United States of the age of 
twenty-one years, who has resided in the State one year, and in the 
county six months, and in the precinct in which he offers to vote sixty 
days, next preceding the election, shall be a voter in said precinct, and 
not elsewhere ; but the following persons are excepted, and shall not 
have the right to vote : — 

1. Persons convicted, in any court of competent jurisdiction, of trea- 
son, or felony, or bribery in an election, or of such high misdemeanor 
as the General Assembly may declare shall operate as an exclusion 
from the right of suffrage ; but persons hereby excluded may be re- 
stored to their civil rights by Executive pardon. 

2. Persons who, at the time of the election, are in coafinement 
under the judgment of a court for some penal offense. 

3. Idiots and insane persons. 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 249 

Sec. 146. No person in the military, naval, or marine service of 
the United States shall be deemed a resident of this State by reason of 
being stationed within the same. 

Sec. 147. The General Assembly shall provide by law for the regis- 
tration of all persons entitled to vote in cities and towns having a 
population of five thousand or more, and may provide by general law 
for the registration of other voters in the State. Where registration 
is required, only persons registered shall have the right to vote. The 
mode of registration shall be prescribed by the General Assembly. 
In all elections by persons in a representative capacity, the voting 
shall be viva voce, and made a matter of record ; but all elections by 
the people shall be by secret official ballot, furnished by public author- 
ity to the voters at the polls, and marked by each voter in private at 
the polls, and then and there deposited. The word "elections" in 
this section includes the decision of questions submitted to the voters, 
as well as the choice of officers by them. The first General Assembly 
held after the adoption of this Constitution shall pass all necessary 
laws to enforce this provision, and shall provide that persons illiter- 
ate, blind, or in any way disabled, may have their ballots marked as 
herein required. 

Sec. 148. Not more than one election each year shall be held in 
this State or in any city, town, district, or county thereof, except as 
otherwise provided in this Constitution. All elections of State, 
county, city, town, or district officers shall be held on the first Tues- 
day after the first Monday in November ; but no officer of any city, 
town, or county, or of any subdivision thereof, except members of 
municipal legislative boards, shall be elected in the same year in 
which meml^ers of the House of Representatives of the United States 
are elected. District or State officers, including members of the Gen- 
eral Assembly, may be elected in the same year in which members of 
the Mouse of Representatives of the United States are elected. All 
elections by the people shall be between the hours of six o'clock a.m. 
and seven o'clock p.m., but the General Assembly may change said 
hours, and all officers of any election shall be residents and voters in 
the precinct in which they act. The General Assembly shall. provide 
by law that all employers shall allow employees, under reasonable regu- 
lations, at least four hours on election days, in which to cast their votes. 

Sec. 149. Voters, in all cases except treason, felony, breach or 
surety of the peace, or violation of the election laws, shall be privi- 
leged from arrest during their attendance at elections, and while they 
are going to and returning therefrom. 

Sec. 150. Every person shall be disqualified from holding any office 
of trust or profit for the term for which he shall have been elected, 
who shall be convicted of having given, or consented to the giving, 
offer, or promise of. any money or other thing of value, to procure 
his election, or to influence the vote of any voter at such election ; 
and if any corporation shall, directly or indirectly, offer, promise, or 
give, or shall authorize, directly or indirectly, any person to offer, 
promise, or give, any money or any thing of value to influence the 
result of any election in this State, or the vote of any voter authorized 



250 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 

to vote therein, or who shall afterward reimburse or compensate, in 
any manner whatever, any person who shall have offered, promised, 
or given any money or other thing of value to influence the result of 
any election or the vote of any such voter, such corporation, if organ- 
ized under the laws of this Commonwealth, shall, on conviction there- 
of, forfeit its charter and all rights, privileges, and immunities there- 
under ; and if chartered by another State, and doing business in this 
State, whether by license or upon mere sufferance, such corporation, 
upon conviction of either of the offenses aforesaid, shall forfeit all 
right to carry on any business in this State : and it shall be the duty 
of the General Assembly to provide for the enforcement of the pro- 
visions of this section. All persons shall be excluded from office who 
have been, or shall hereafter be. convicted of a felony, or of such high 
misdemeanor as may be prescribed by law ; but such disability may 
be removed by pardon of the governor. The privilege of free suf- 
frage shall be supported by laws regulating elections, and prohibiting, 
under adequate penalties, all undue influence thereon, from power, 
bribery, tumult, or other improper practices. 

Sec. 151. The General Assembly shall provide suitable means for 
depriving of office any person who, to procure his nomination or elec- 
tion, has, in his canvass or election, been guilty of any unlawful use 
of money, or other thing of value, or has been guilty of fraud, intimi- 
dation, bribery, or any other corrupt practice ; and he shall be held 
responsible for acts done by others with his authority, or ratified by 
him. 

Sec. 152. Except as otherwise provided in this Constitution, vacan- 
cies in all elective offices shall be filled by election or appointment, as 
follows : if the unexpired term will end at the next succeeding 
annual election at which either city, town, county, district, or State 
officers are to be elected, the office shall be filled by appointment for 
the remainder of the term ; if the unexpired term will not end at the 
next succeeding annual election at which either city, town, county, 
district, or State officers are to be elected, and if three months inter- 
vene before said succeeding annual election at which either city, town, 
county, district, or State officers are to be elected, the office shall be 
filled by appointment until said election, and then said vacancy shall 
be filled by election for the remainder of the term ; if three months 
do not intervene between the happening of said vacancy and the next 
succeeding election at which city, town, county, district, or State 
officers are to be elected, the office shall be filled by appointment 
until the second succeeding annual election at which city, town, 
county, district, or State officers are to be elected ; and then, if any 
part of the term remains unexpired, the office shall be filled by elec- 
tion until the regular time for the election of officers to fill said offices. 
Vacancies in all offices for the State at large, or for districts larger 
than a county, shall be filled by appointment of the governor : all 
other appointments shall be made as m.ay be prescribed by law. No 
person shall ever be appointed a member of the General Assembly, 
but vacancies therein may be filled at a special election, in such man 
ner as may be provided by law. 



CX3NSTITUT10N OF KENTUCKY 2$ I 

Sec. 153. Except as otherwise herein expressly provided, the Gen- 
eral Assembly shall have power to provide by general law for the 
manner of voting, for ascertaining the result of elections and making 
due returns thereof, for issuing certificates or commissions to all per- 
sons entiiled thereto, and for the trial of contested elections. 

Sec. 154. The General Assembly shall prescribe such laws as may 
be necessary for the restriction or prohibition of the sale or gift of 
spirituous, vinous, or malt liquors on election days. 

Sec. 155. The _;Arovisions of sections one hundred and forty-five to 
one hundred and fifty-four, inclusive, shall not apply to the election 
of school trustees and other common school district elections. Said 
elections shall be regulated by the General Assembly, except as other- 
wise provided in this Constitution. 

Municipalities. 

Sec. 156. The cities and towns of this Commonwealth, for the 
purposes of their organization and government, shall be divided into 
six classes. The organization and powers of each class shall be 
defined and provided for by general laws, so that all municipal cor- 
porations of the same class shall possess the same powers, and be 
subject to the same restrictions. To the first class shall belong cities 
with a population of one hundred thousand or more ; to the second 
class, cities with a population of twenty thousand or more, and less 
than one hundred thousand ; to the third class, cities with a popula- 
tion of eight thousand or more, and less than twenty thousand ; to 
the fourth class, cities and towns with a population of three thou- 
sand or more, and less than eight thousand ; to the fifth class, cities 
and towns with a population of one thousand or more, and less than 
three thousand ; to the sixth class, towns with a population of less 
than one thousand. The General Assembly shall assign the cities 
and towns of the Commonwealth to the classes to which they respec- 
tively belong, and change assignments made as the population of 
said cities and towns may increase or decrease, and, in the absence of 
other satisfactory information as to their population, shall be gov- 
erned by the last preceding Federal census in so doing ; but no city 
or town shall be transferred from one class to another, except in pur- 
suance of a law previously enacted and providing therefor. The 
General Assembly, by a general law, shall provide how towns may be 
organized, and enact laws for the government of such towns until the 
same are assigned to one or the other of the classes above named ; 
but such assignment shall be made at the first session of the General 
Assembly after the organization of said town or city. 

Sec. 157. The tax rate of cities, towns, counties, taxing districts, 
and other municipalities, for other than school purposes, shall not at 
any time exceed the following rates upon the value of the taxable 
property therein : viz., for all towns or cities having a population of 
fifteen thousand or more, one dollar and fifty cents on the hundred 
dollars ; for all towns or cities having less than fifteen thousand and 
not less than ten thousand, one dollar on the hundred dollars ; for all 



252 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 

towns or cities having less than ten thousand, seventy-five cents on 
the hundred dollars ; and for counties and taxing districts, fifty cents 
on the hundred dollars ; unless it should be necessary to enable such 
city, town, county, or taxing district to pay the interest on, and prO' 
vide a sinking fund for the extinction of, indebtedness contracted 
before the adoption of this Constitution. No county, city, town, tax- 
ing district, or other municipality shall be authorized or permitted to 
become indebted, in any manner or for any purpose, to an amount 
exceeding, in any year, the income and revenue provided for such 
year, without the assent of two-thirds of the voters thereof, voting at 
an election to be held for that purpose ; and any indebtedness con- 
tracted in violation of this section shall be void. Nor shall such con- 
tract be enforceable by the person with whom made ; nor shall such 
municipality ever be authorized to assume the same. 

Sec. 158. The respective cities, towns, counties, taxing districts, 
and municipalities shall not be authorized or permitted to incur in- 
debtedness to an amount, including existing indebtedness, in the 
aggregate exceeding the following-named maximum percentages on 
the value of the taxable property therem, to be estimated by the as- 
sessment next before the last assessment previous to the incurring of 
the indebtedness : viz., cities of the first and second classes, and of 
the third class having a population exceeding fifteen thousand, ten per 
centum ; cities of the third class having a population of less than fifteen 
thousand, and cities and towns of the fourth class, five per centum ; 
cities and towns of the fifth and sixth classes, three per centum ; and 
counties, taxing districts, and other municipalities, two per centum : 
provided any city, town, county, taxing district, or other municipality 
may contract an indebtedness in excess of such limitations, when the 
same has been authorized under laws in force prior to the adoption of 
this Constitution, or when necessary for the completion of and pay- 
ment for a public improvement undertaken and not completed and 
paid for at the time of the adoption of this Constitution ; aiid p7'omded, 
further, if, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, the 
aggregate indebtedness, bonded or floating, of any city, town, county, 
taxing district, or other municipality, including that which it has been 
or may be authorized to contract as herein provided, shall exceed the 
limit herein prescribed, then no such city or town shall be authorized 
or permitted to increase its indebtedness in an amount exceeding two 
per centum, and no such county, taxing district, or other municipality, 
in an amount exceeding one per centum, in the aggregate upon the 
value of the taxable property therein, to be ascertained as herein pro- 
vided, until the aggregate of its indebtedness shall have been reduced 
below the limit herein fixed ; and thereafter it shall not exceed the 
limit, unless in case of emergency the public health or safety should 
so require. Nothing herein shall prevent the issue of renewal bonds, 
or bonds to fund the floating indebtedness of any city, town, county, 
taxing district, or other municipality. 

Sec. 159. Whenever any county, city, town, taxing district, or other 
municipality is authorized to contract an indebtedness, it shall be re- 
quired at the same time to provide for the collection of an annual tax 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 253 

sufficient to pay the interest on said indebtedness, and to create a 
sinking fund for the payment of the principal thereof, within not 
more than forty years from the time of contracting the same. 

Sec. 160. The mayor or chief executive, police judges, members of 
legislative boards or councils of towns and cities, shall be elected by 
the qualified voters \.h^x&oi \ provided the mayor or chief executive 
and police judges of the towns of the fourth, fifth, and sixth classes 
may be appointed or elected as provided by law. The terms of office 
of mayors or chief executives and police judges shall be four years and 
until their successors shall be quahfied ; and of members of legisla- 
tive boards, two years. When any city of the first or second class is 
divided into wards or districts, members of legislative boards shall be 
elected at large by the qualified voters of said city, but so selected 
that an equal proportion thereof shall reside in each of the said wards 
or districts ; but when in any city of the first, second, or third class 
there are two legislative boards, the less numerous shall be selected 
from and elected by the voters at large of said city ; but other officers 
ot towns or cities shall be elected by the qualified voters therein, or 
appointed by the local authorities thereof, as the General Assembly 
may, by a general law, provide ; but when elected by the voters of a 
town or city, their terms of office shall be four years, and until their 
successors shall be qualified. No mayor or chief executive or fiscal 
officer of any city of the first or second cla^s, after the expiration of 
the term of office to which he has been elected under this Constitution 
shall be eligible for the succeeding term. "Fiscal officer" shall not 
include an auditor or assessor, or anv other officer whose chief duty is 
not the collection or holding of public moneys. The General Assem- 
bly shall prescribe the qualifications of all officers of towns and cities 
the manner in and causes for which they may be removed from office' 
and how vacancies in such offices may be filled. ' 

Sec. 161 The compensation of any city, county, town, or munici- 
pal officer shall not be changed after his election or appointment, or 
during his term of office ; nor shall the term of any such officer be 
extended beyond the period for which he may have been elected or 
appointed. 

Sec 162. No county, city, town, or other municipality shall ever 
be authorized or permitted to pay any claim created against it, under 
any agreement or contract made without express authority of law 
and all such unauthorized agreements or contracts shall be null and 
void. 

Sec. 163. No street railway, gas, water, steam-heating, telephone. ' 
or electric-light company, within a city or town, shall be permitted 
or authorized to construct its tracks, lay its pipes or mains, or erect 
Its poles, posts, or other apparatus along, over, under, or across the 
streets alleys, or public grounds of a city or town, without the con- 
sent of the proper legislative bodies or boards of such city or town 
being first obtained ; but when charters have been heretofore granted 
conferring such rights, and work has in good faith been becrun there- 
under, the provisions of this section shall not apply. 

Sec. 164. No county, city, town, taxing district, or other munici- 



254 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 

pality shall be authorized or permitted to grant any franchise or privi- 
lege, or make any contract in reference thereto, for a term exceeding 
twenty years. Before granting such franchise or privilege for a term 
of years, such municipality shall first, after due advertisement, re- 
ceive bids therefor publicly, and award the same to the highest and 
best bidder ; but it shall have the right to reject any or all bids. 
This section shall not apply to a trunk railway. 

Sec. 165. No person shall at the same time be a State ofificer or 
a deputy officer, or member of the General Assembly, and an officer 
of any county, city, town, or other municipality, or an employee 
thereof; and no person shall at the same time fill two municipal offices, 
either in the same or different municipalities, except as may be other- 
wise provided in this Constitution; but a notary public, or an officer of 
the militia, shall not be ineligible to hold any other office mentioned 
in this section. 

Sec. 166. All acts of incorporation of cities and towns heretofore 
granted, and all amendments thereto, except as provided in section 
one hundred and sixty-seven, shall continue in force under this Con- 
stitution ; and all city and police courts established in any city or 
town shall remain, with their present powers and jurisdictions, until 
such time as the General Assembly shall provide by general laws for 
the government of towns and cities, and the officers and courts there- 
of, but not longer than four years from and after the first day of 
January, one thousand eight hundred and ninety-one, within which 
time the General Assembly shall provide by general laws for the gov- 
ernment of towns and cities, and the officers and courts thereof, as 
provided in this Constitution. 

Sec. 167. All city and town officers in this State shall be elected 
or appointed as provided in the charter of each respective town and 
city, until the general election in November, 1893, and until their 
successors shall be elected and qualified, at which time the terms of 
all such officers shall expire ; and at that election, and thereafter as 
their terms of office may expire, all officers required to be elected in 
cities and towns by this Constitution, or by general laws enacted 
in conformity to its provisions, shall be elected at the general elec- 
tions in November, but only in the odd years, except members of 
municipal legislative boards, who may be elected either in the even 
or odd years, or part in the even and part in the odd years : provided 
that the terms of office of police judges who were elected for four 
years at the August election, eighteen hundred and ninety, shall 
expire August thirty-first, eighteen hundred and ninety-four, and the 
terms of police judges elected in November, eighteen hundred and 
ninety-three, shall begin September first, eighteen hundred and 
ninety-four, and continue until the November election, eighteen 
hundred and ninety-seven, and until their successors are elected and 
qualified. 

Sec. 168. No municipal ordinance shall fix a penalty for a violation 
thereof at less than that imposed by statute for the same offense. A 
conviction or acquittal under either shall constitute a bar to another 
prosecution for the same offense 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 255 



Revenue and Taxation. 

Sec. 169. The fiscal year shall commence on the first day of July 
in each year, unless otherwise provided by law. 

Sec. 170. There shall be exempt from taxation public property used 
for public purposes ; places actually used for religious worship, with 
the grounds attached thereto and used, and appurtenant to the house 
of worship, not exceeding one-half acre in cities or towns, and not 
exceeding two acres in the country ; places of burial not held for 
private or corporate profit, institutions of purely public charity, and 
institutions of education not used or employed for gain by any per- 
son or corporation, and the income of which is devoted solely to the 
cause of education ; public libraries, their endowments, and the in- 
come of such property as is used exclusively for their maintenance ; 
all parsonages or residences owned by any religious society, and occu- 
pied as a home, and for no other purpose, by the minister of any 
religion, with not exceeding one-half acre of ground in towns and 
cities, and two acres of ground in the country, appurtenant thereto ; 
household goods and other personal property of a person with a fam- 
ily, not exceeding two hundred and fifly dollars in value ; crops grown 
in the year in which the assessment is made, and in the hands of the 
producer ; and all laws exempting or commuting property from taxa- 
tion other than the property above mentioned shall be void. The 
General Assembly may authorize any incorporated city or town to 
exempt manufacturing establishments from municipal taxation, 
for a period not exceeding five years, as an inducement to their 
location. 

Sec. 171. The General Assembly shall provide by law an annual 
tax, which, with other resources, shall be sufficient to defray the esti- 
mated expenses of the Commonwealth for each fiscal year. Taxes 
shall be levied and collected for public purposes only. They shall 
be uniform upon all property subject to taxation within the territorial 
limits of the authority levying the tax ; and all taxes shall be levied 
and collected by general laws. 

Sec. 172. All property not exempted from taxation by this 
Constitution shall be assessed for taxation at its fair cash value, 
estimated at the price it would bring at a fair voluntary sale ; and 
any officer, or other person authorized to assess values for taxation, 
who shall commit any willful error in the performance of his duty, 
shall be deerned guilty of misfeasance, and upon conviction thereof 
shall forfeit his office, and be otherwise punished as may be provided 
by law. 

Sec. 173. The receiving, directly or indirectly, by any officer of 
the Common wealtii, or of any county, city, or town, or member or 
officer of the General Assembly, of any interest, profit, or perquisites 
arising from the use or loan of public funds in his hands, or moneys 
to be raised through his agency for State, city, town, district, or 
county purposes, shall be deemed a felony. Said offense shall be 
punished as may be prescribed by law, a part of which punishment 
shall be disqualification to hold office. 



256 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 



Sec. 174. All properly, whether owned by natural persons 01 
corporations, shall be taxed in proportion to its value, unless ex- 
empted by this Constitution ; and all corporate property shall pay 
the same rate of taxation paid by individual property. Nothing in 
this Constitution shall be construed to prevent the General Assem- 
bly from providing for taxation based on income, licenses, or fran- 
chises. 

Sec. 175. The power to tax property shall not be surrendered or 
suspended by any contract or grant to which the Commonwealth 
shall be a party. 

Sec. 176. The Commonwealth shall not assume the debt of any 
county, municipal corporation, or political subdivision of the State, 
unless such debt shall have been contracted to defend itself in time 
of war, to repel invasion, or to suppress insurrection. 

Sec. 177. The credit of the Commonwealth shall not be given, 
pledged, or loaned to any individual, company, corporation, or asso- 
ciation, municipality, or political subdivision of the State, nor shall 
the Commonwealth become an owner or stockholder in, nor make 
donation to, any company, association, or corporation ; nor shall 
the Commonwealth construct a railroad or other highway. 

Sec. 178. All laws authorizing the borrowing of money by and on 
behalf of the Commonwealth, county, or other political subdivis- 
ion of the State, shall specify the purpose for which the money is 
to be used, and the money so borrowed shall be used for no other 
purpose. 

Sec. 179. The General Assembly shall not authorize any county 
or subdivision thereof, city, town, or incorporated district, to become 
a stockholder in any company, association, or corporation, or to 
obtain or appropriate money for, or to loan its credit to, any corpo- 
ration, association, or individual, except for the purpose of construct- 
ing or maintaining bridges, turnpike roads, orgravel roads : provided, 
if any municipal corporation shall offer to the Commonwealth any 
property or money for locating or building a Capitol, and the Com- 
monwealth accepts such offer, the corporation may comply with the 
offer. 

Sec. 180. The General Assembly may authorize the counties, 
cities, or towns to levy a poll-tax not exceeding one dollar and fifty 
cents per head. Every act enacted by the General Assembly, and 
every ordinance and resolution passed by any county, city, town, or 
municipal board or local legislative body, levying a tax, shall specify 
distinctly the purpose for which said tax is levied ; and no tax 
levied and collected for one purpose shall ever be devoted to another 
purpose. 

Sec. 181. The General Assembly shall not impose taxes for the 
purposes of any county, city, town, or other municipal corporation, 
but may by general laws confer on the proper authorities thereof- 
respectively, the power to assess and collect such taxes. The Gen- 
eral Assembly may, by general laws only, provide for the payment of 
license fees on franchises, stock used for breeding purposes, the vari- 
ous trades, occupations, and professions, or a special or excise tax, 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 257 

and may by general laws delegate the power to counties, towns, 
cities, and other municipal corporations, to impose and collect license 
fees on stock used for breeding purposes, on franchises, trades, occu- 
pations, and professions. (For amendment of 1902, see p. 272.) 

Sec. 182. Nothing in this Constitution shall be construed to pre- 
vent the General Assembly from providing by law how railroads and 
railroad property shall be assessed, and how taxes thereon shall be 
collected ; and until otherwise provided, the present law on said 
subject shall remain in force. 

Education. 

Sec. 183. The General Assembly shall by appropriate legislation 
provide for an efficient system of common schools throughout the 
State. 

Sec. 184. The bond of the Commonwealth, issued in favor of the 
Board of Education for the sum of one million three hundred and 
twenty-seven thousand dollars, shall constitute one bond of the Com- 
monwealth in favor of the Board of Education ; and this bond and the 
seventy-three thousand five hundred dollars of the stock in the Bank of 
Kentucky, held by the Board of Education, and its proceeds, shall be 
held inviolate for the purpose of sustaining the system of common 
schools. The interest and dividends of said fund, together with any 
sum which may be produced by taxation or otherwise for purposes of 
common school education, shall be appropriated to the common schools, 
and to no other purpose. No sum shall be raised or collected for edu- 
cation other than in common schools until the question of taxation is 
submitted to the legal voters, and the majority of the votes cast at said 
election shall be in favor of such taxation : provided the tax now im- 
posed for educational purposes, and for the endowment and mainte- 
nance of the Agricultural and Mechanical College, shall remain until 
changed by law. 

Sec. 185. The General Assembly shall make provision by law for 
the payment of the interest of said school fund, and may provide for 
the sale of the stock in the Bank of Kentucky ; and in case of a sale 
of all or any part of said stock, the proceeds of sale shall be in- 
vested by the sinking-fund commissioners in other good interest-bear- 
ing stocks or bonds, which shall be subject to sale and reinvestment 
from time to time, in like manner and with the same restrictions as 
provided with reference to the sale of the said stock in the Bank of 
Kentucky. 

Sec. 186. Each county in the Commonwealth shall be entitled to 
its proportion of the school fund on its census of pupil children for 
each school year ; and if \\\q pro rata share of any school district be 
not called for after the second school year, it shall be covered into the 
treasury, and be placed to the credit of the school fund for general 
apportionment the following school year. The surplus now due the 
several counties shall remain a perpetual obligation against the Com- 
monwealth for the benefit of said respective counties, for which the 
Commonwealth shall execute its bond, bearing interest at the rate of 

KENT. HIST, — 17 



258 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 

six per centum per annum, payable annually to the counties respec- 
tively entitled to the same, and in the proportion to which they are 
entitled, to benised exclusively in aid of common schools. 

Sec. 187. In distributing the school fund, no distinction shall be 
made on account of race or color, and separate schools for vi^hite and 
colored children shall be maintained. 

Sec. 188. So much of any moneys as may be received by the Com- 
monwealth from the United States under the recent act of Congress 
refunding the direct tax shall become a part of the school fund, and 
be held as provided in section one hundred and eighty-four ; but the 
General Assembly may authorize the use, by the Commonwealth, of 
the moneys so received, or any part thereof, in which event a bond 
shall be executed to the Board of Education for the amount so used, 
which bond shall be held on the same terms and conditions, and sub- 
ject to the provisions of section one hundred and eighty-four, con- 
cerning the bond therein referred to. 

Sec. 189. No portion of any fund or tax now existing, or that may 
hereafter be raised or levied, for educational purposes, shall be appro- 
priated to, or used by, or in aid of, any church, sectarian, or denom- 
inational school. 

Corporations. 

Sec. igo. No corporation in existence at the time of the adoption 
of this Constitution shall have the benefit of future legislation with- 
out first filing in the office of the secretary of state an acceptance of 
the provisions of this Constitution. 

Sec. 191. All existing charters or grants of special or exclusive 
privileges, under which a bona fide organization shall not have taken 
place, and business been commenced in good faith at the time of 
the adoption of this Constitution, shall thereafter be void and of no 
effect. 

Sec. 192. No corporation shall engage in business other than that 
expressly authorized by its charter, or the law under which it may have 
been or hereafter may be organized, nor shall it hold any real estate, 
except such as may be proper and necessary for carrying on its legiti- 
mate business, for a longer period than five years, under penalty of 
escheat. 

Sec. 193. No corporation shall issue stock or bonds except for an 
equivalent in money paid or labor done, or property actually received 
and applied to the purposes for which such corporation was created ; 
and neither labor nor property shall be received in payment of stock 
or bonds at a greater value than the market price at the time said 
labor was done or property delivered ; and all fictitious increase of 
stock or indebtedness shall be void. 

Sec. 194. All corporations formed under the laws of this State, or 
carrying on business in this State, shall at all times have one or more 
known places of business in this State, and an authorized agent or 
agents there, upon whom process may be executed ; and the General 
Assembly shall enact laws to carry into effect the provisions of this 
section. 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 259 

Sec. 195. The Commonwealth, in the exercise of the right of emi- 
nent domain, shall have and retain the same powers to take the prop- 
erty and franchises of incorporated companies for public use which 
it has and retains to take the property of individuals ; and the ex- 
ercise of the police powers of this Commonwealth shall never be 
abridged, nor so construed as to permit corporations to conduct 
their business in such manner as to infringe upon the equal rights of 
individuals. 

Sec. 196. Transportation of freight and passengers by railroad, 
steamboat, or other common carrier, shall be so regulated by general 
law as to prevent unjust discrimination. No common carrier shall be 
permitted to contract for relief from its common law liability. 

Sec. 197. No railroad, steamboat, or other common carrier, under 
heavy penalty to be fixed by the General Assembly, shall give a free 
pass or passes, or shall, at reduced rates not common to the public, 
sell tickets for transportation to any State, district, city, town, or 
county officer, or member of the General Assembly, or judge; and 
any State, district, city, town, or county officer, or member of the 
General Assembly, or judge, who shall accept or use a free pass or 
passes, or shall receive or use tickets or transportation at reduced 
rates not common to the public, shall forfeit his office. It shall be 
the duty of the General Assembly to enact laws to enforce the pro- 
visions of this section. 

Sec. 198. It shall be the duty of the General Assembly from time 
to time, as necessity may require, to enact such laws as may be nec- 
essary to prevent all trusts, pools, combinations, or other organiza- 
tions, from combining to depreciate below its real value any article, 
or to enhance the cost of any article above its real value. 

Sec. 19^. Any association or corporation, or the lessees or managers 
thereof, organized for the purpose, or any individual, shall have the 
right to construct and maintain lines of telegraph within this State, 
and to connect the same with other lines ; and said companies shall 
receive and transmit each other's messages without unreasonable delay 
or discrimination, and all such companies are hereby declared to be 
common carriers, and subject to legislative control. Telephone com- 
panies operating exchanges in different towns or cities, or other pub- 
lic stations, shall receive and transmit each other's messages without 
unreasonable delay or discrimination. The General Assembly shall, 
by general laws of uniform operation, provide reasonable regulations 
to give full effect to this section. Nothing herein shall be construed 
to interfere with the rights of cities or towns to arrange and control 
their streets and alleys, and to designate the places at which, and the 
manner in which, the wires of such companies shall be erected or laid 
within the limits of such city or town. 

Sec. 200. If any railroad, telegraph, express, or other corporation 
organized under the laws of this Commonwealth shall consolidate, by 
sale or otherwise, with any railroad, telegraph, express, or other cor- 
poration organized under the laws of any other State, the same shall 
not thereby become a foreign corporation ; but the courts of this 
Commonwealth shall retain jurisdiction over that part of the corporate 



260 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 



property within the limits of this State in all matters which may arise, 
as if said consolidation had not taken place. 

Sec. 20I. No railroad, telegraph, telephone, bridge, or common 
carrier company shall consolidate its capital stock, franchises, or prop- 
erty, or pool its earnings, in whole or in part, with any other railroad, 
telegraph, telephone, bridge, or common carrier company, owning a 
parallel or competing line or structure, or acquire by purchase, lease, 
or otherwise, any parallel or competing line or structure, or operate 
the same ; nor shall any railroad company or other common carrier 
combine or make any contract with the owners of any vessel that 
leaves or makes port in this State, or with any common carrier, by 
which combination or contract the earnings of one doing the carrying 
are to be shared by the other not doing the carrying. 

Sec. 202. No corporation organized outside the limits of this State 
shall be allowed to transact business within the State on more favor- 
able conditions than are prescribed by law to similar corporations 
organized under the laws of this Commonwealth. 

Sec. 203. No corporation shall lease or alienate any franchise so as 
to relieve the franchise or property held thereunder from the liabilities 
of the lessor or grantor, lessee or grantee, contracted or incurred in 
the operation, use, or enjoyment of such franchise, or any of its privi- 
leges. 

Sec. 204. Any president, director, manager, cashier, or other officer 
of any banking institution or association for the deposit or loan of 
money, or any individual banker, who shall receive or assent to the 
receiving of deposits after he shall have knowledge of the fact that 
such banking institution or association or individual banker is insol- 
vent, shall be individually responsible for such deposits so received, 
and shall be guilty of felony, and subject to such punishment as shall 
be prescribed by law. 

Sec. 205. The General Assembly shall by general laws provide for 
the revocation or forfeiture of the charters of all corporations guilty of 
abuse or misuse of their corporate powers, privileges, or franchises, or 
whenever said corporations become detrimental to the interest and 
welfare of the Commonwealth or its citizens. 

Sec. 206. All elevators or storehouses where grain or other property 
is stored for a compensation, whether the property stored be kept 
separate or not, are declared to be pubhc warehouses, subject to legis- 
lative control ; and the General Assembly shall enact laws for the 
inspection of grain, tobacco, and other produce, and fpr the protec- 
tion of producers, shippers, and receivers of grain, tobacco, and other 
produce. 

Sec. 207. In all elections for directors or managers of any corpora- 
tion, each shareholder shall have the right to cast as many votes in 
the aggregate as he shall be entitled to vote in said company under its 
charter, multiplied by the number of directors or managers to be 
elected at such election ; and each shareholder may cast the whole 
number of votes, either in person or by proxy, for one candidate, or 
distribute such votes among two or more candidates ; and such direct- 
ors or managers shall not be elected in any other manner. 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 26 1 

Sec. 208. The word "corporation" as used in this Constitution 
shall embrace joint-stock companies and associations. 

Railroads and Commerce. 

Sec. 209. A commission is hereby established, to be known as 
** The Railroad Commission," which shall be composed of three com- 
missioners. During the session of the General Assembly which con- 
venes in December, eighteen hundred and ninety-one, and before the 
first day of June, eighteen hundred and ninety-two, the governor 
shall appoint, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, said 
three commissioners, one from each superior court district as now estab- 
lished ; and said appointees shall take their office at the expiration 
of the terms of the present incumbents. The commissioners so 
appointed shall continue in office during the term of the present 
governor, and until their successors are elected and qualified. At the 
regular election in eighteen hundred and ninety-five, and every four 
years thereafter, the commissioners shall be elected, one in each 
superior court district, by the qualified voters thereof, at the same 
time and for the same term as the governor. No person shall be 
eligible to said office unless he be, at the time of his election, at least 
thirty years of age, a citizen of Kentucky two years, and a resident 
of the district from which he is chosen one year, next preceding his 
election. Any vacancy in this office shall be filled as provided in 
section one hundred and fifty-two of this Constitution. The General 
Assembly may from time to time change said districts so as to equalize 
the population thereof, and may, if deemed expedient, require that 
the commissioners be all elected by the qualified voters of the State at 
large ; and if so required, one commissioner shall be from each dis- 
trict. No person in the service of any railroad or common carrier 
company or corporation, or of any firm or association conducting 
business as a common carrier, or in any wise pecuniarily interested in 
such company, corporation, firm, or association, or in the railroad 
business, or as a common carrier, shall hold such office. The powers 
and duties of the railroad commissioners shall be regulated by law ; 
and, until otherwise provided by law, the commission so created shall 
have the same powers and jurisdiction, perform the same duties^ be 
subject to the same regulations, and receive the same compensation, 
as now conferred, prescribed, and allowed by law to the existing rail- 
road commissioners. The General Assembly may, for cause, address 
any of said commissioners out of office by similar proceedings as in 
the case of judges of the Court of Appeals ; and the General Assem- 
bly shall enact laws to prevent the nonfeasance and misfeasance in 
office of said commissioners, and to impose proper penalties therefor. 

Sec. 210. No corporation engaged in the business of common 
carrier shall, directly or indirectly, own, manage, operate, or engage in, 
any other business than that of a common carrier, or hold, own, lease, 
or acquire, directly or indirectly, mines, factories, or timber, except 
such as shall be necessary to carry on its business ; and the General 



262 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 

Assembly shall enact laws to give effect to the provisions of this 
section. 

Sec. 211. No railroad corporation organized under the lav^s of 
any other State, or of the United States, and doing business, or pro- 
posing to do business, in this State, shall be entitled to the benefit of 
the right of eminent domain, or have power to acquire the right of 
way or real estate for depot or other uses, until it shall have become a 
body corporate pursuant to and in accordance with the laws of this 
Commonwealth. 

Sec. 212. The rolling stock and other movable property belonging 
to any railroad corporation or company in this State shall be considered 
personal property, and shall be liable to execution and sale in the 
same manner as the personal property of individuals. The earnings 
of any railroad company or corporation, and choses in action, money 
and personal property of all kinds belonging to it, in the hands or 
under the control of any officer, agent, or employee of such corpora- 
tion or company, shall be subject to process of attachment to the 
same extent, and in the same manner, as like property of individuals 
when in the hands or under the control of other persons. Any. such 
earnings, choses in action, money or other personal property, may be 
subjected to the payment of any judgment against such corporation or 
company in the same manner and to the same extent as such property 
of individuals in the hands of third persons. 

Sec. 213. All railroad, transfer, belt lines, and railway bridge com- 
panies, organized under the laws of Kentucky, or operating, maintain- 
ing, or controlling any railroad, transfer, belt lines, or bridges, or 
doing a railway business in this State, shall receive, transfer, deliver, 
and switch empty or loaded cars, and shall move, transport, receive, 
load, or unload all the freight in car-loads or less quantities, coming 
to or going from any railroad, transfer, belt line, bridge, or siding 
thereon, with equal promptness and dispatch, and without any dis- 
crimination as to charges, preference, drawback, or rebate in favor of 
any person, corporation, consignee, or consignor, in any matter as to 
payment, transportation, handling, or delivery ; and shall so receive, 
deliver, transfer, and transport all freight as above set forth, from 
and to any point where there is a physical connection between the 
tracks of said companies. But this- section shall not be construed as 
requiring any such common carrier to allow the use of its tracks for 
the trains of another engaged in like business. 

Sec. 214. No railway, transfer, belt line, or railway bridge com- 
pany shall make any exclusive or preferential contract or arrangement 
with any individual, association, or corporation, for the receipt, trans- 
fer, delivery, transportation, handling, care, or custody of any freight, 
or for the conduct of any business as a common carrier. 

Sec. 215. All railway, transfer, belt lines, or railway bridge com- 
panies shall receive, load, unload, transport, haul, deliver, and handle 
freight of the same class for all persons, associations, or corporations 
from and to the same points and upon the same conditions, in the 
same manner and for the same charges, and for the same method 
of payment. 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 263 

Sec. 216. All railway, transfer, belt lines, and railway bridge com- 
panies shall allow the tracks of each other to unite, intersect, and 
cross at any point where such union, intersection, and crossing is 
reasonable or feasible. 

Sec. 217. Any person, association, or corporation, willfully or 
knowingly violating any of the provisions of sections two hundred 
and thirteen, two hundred and fourteen, two hundred and fifteen, or two 
hundred and sixteen, shall, upon conviction by a court of competent 
jurisdiction, for the first offense be fined two thousand dollars ; for the 
second offense, five thousand dollars ; and for the third offense, shall 
thereupon, ipso facto, forfeit its franchises, privileges, or charter 
rights ; and if such delinquent be a foreign corporation, it shall, ipso 
facto, forfeit its right to do business in this State ; and the attorney- 
general of the Commonwealth shall forthwith, upon notice of the 
violation of any of said provisions, institute proceedings to enforce 
the provisions of the aforesaid sections. 

Sec. 218. It shall be unlawful for any person or corporation own- 
ing or operating a railroad in this State, or any common carrier, to 
charge or receive any greater compensation in the aggregate for the 
transportation of passengers, or of property of like kind, under sub- 
stantially similar circumstances and conditions, for a shorter than for 
a longer distance over the same line, in the same direction, the shorter 
being included within the longer distance ; but this shall not be con- 
strued as authorizing any common carrier, or person or corporation, 
owning or operating a railroad in this State, to receive as great com- 
pensation for a shorter as for a longer distance : provided, that, upon 
application to the railroad commission, such common carrier, or person, 
or corporation owning or operating a railroad in this State, may in 
special cases, after investigation by the commission, be authorized to 
charge less for longer than for shorter distances for the transportation 
of passengers or property ; and the commission may from time to 
time prescribe the extent to which such common carrier or person, or 
corporation owning or operating a railroad in this State, may be 
relieved from the operations of this section. 

The Militia. 

Sec. 219. The militia of the Commonwealth of Kentucky shall 
consist of all able-bodied male residents of the State between the ages of 
eighteen and forty-five years, except such persons as may be exempted 
by the laws of the State or of the United States. 

Sec. 220. The General Assembly shall provide for maintaining an 
organized militia, and may exempt from military service persons 
having conscientious scruples against bearing arms ; but such persons 
shall pay an equivalent for such exemption. 

Sec. 221. The organization, equipment, and discipline of the militia 
shall conform as nearly as practicable to the regulations for the 
government of the armies of the United States, 

Sec. 222. All militia officers whose appointment is not herein 
otherwise provided for shall be elected by persons subject to military 



264 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 

duty within their respective companies, battalions, regiments, or other 
commands, under such rules and regulations, and for such terms, not 
exceeding four years, as the General Assembly may from time to time 
direct and establish. The governor shall appoint an adjutant-general 
and his other staff officers; the generals and commandants of regiments 
and battalions shall respectively appoint their staff officers ; and the 
commandants of companies shall, subject to the approval of their 
regimental or battalion commanders, appoint their non-commissioned 
officers. The governor shall have power to fill vacancies that may 
occur in elective offices by granting commissions, which shall expire 
when such vacancies have been filled according to the provisions of 
this Constitution. 

Sec. 223. The General Assembly shall provide for the safe-keeping 
of the public arms, military records, relics, and banners of the Com- 
monwealth of Kentucky. 

General Provisions. 

Sec. 224. The General Assembly shall provide by a general law 
what officers shall execute bond for the faithful discharge of their 
duties, and fix the Hability therein. 

Sec. 225. No armed person or bodies of men shall be brought into 
this State for the preservation of the peace or the suppression of do- 
mestic violence, except upon the application of the General Assembly, 
or of the governor when the General Assembly may not be in session. 

Sec. 226. Lotteries and gift enterprises are forbidden, and no privi- 
leges shall be granted for such purposes, and none shall be exercised, and 
no schemes for similar purposes shoU be allowed. The General Assem- 
bly shall enforce this section by proper penalties. All lottery privi- 
leges or charters heretofore granted are revoked. 

Sec. 227. Judges of the county court, justices of the peace, sheriffs, 
coroners, surveyors, jailers, assessors, county attorneys, and constables 
shall be subject to indictment or prosecution for misfeasance or malfea- 
sance in office, or willful neglect in discharge of official duties, in such 
mode a's may be prescribed by law ; and upon conviction, his office shall 
become vacant, but such officer shall have the right of appeal to 
the Court of Appeals. 

Sec. 228. Members of the General Assembly and all officers, before 
they enter upon the execution of the duties of their respective offices, 
and all members of the bar before they enter upon the practice of their 
profession, shall take the following oath or affirmation : " I do solemnly 
swear (or affirm, as the case may be) that I will support the Constitu- 
tion of the United States and the Constitution of this Commonwealth, 
and be faithful and true to the Commonwealth of Kentucky so long as I 
continue a citizen thereof, and that I will faithfully execute, to the best 
of my ability, the office of according to law; and I do further sol- 
emnly swear (or affirm) that since the adoption of the present Constitu- 
tion, I, being a citizen of this State, have not fought a duel with deadly 
weapons within this State nor out of it, nor have I sent or accepted a 
challenge to fight a duel with deadly weapons, nor have I acted as 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 265 

second in carrying a challengfe, nor aided or assisted any person thus 
offending-, so help me God ! " 

Sec. 229. Treason against the Commonwealth shall consist only in 
levying war against it, or in adhering to its enemies, giving them aid 
and comfort. No person shall be convicted of treason except on the 
testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or his own confession 
in open court. 

Sec. 230. No money shall be drawn from the State treasur}', except 
in pursuance of appropriations made by law ; and a regular statement 
and account of the receipts and expenditures of all public money shall 
be published annually. 

Sec. 231. The General Assembly may by law direct in what manner 
and in what courts suits may be brought against the Commonwealth. 

Sec. 232. The manner of administering an oath or affirmation shall 
be such as is most consistent with the conscience of the deponent, and 
shall be esteemed by the General Assembly the most solemn appeal to 
God. 

Sec. 233. All laws which, on the first day of June, one thousand 
seven hundred and ninety-two, were in force in the State of Virginia, 
and which are of a general nature and not local to that State, and not 
repugnant to this Constitution, nor to the laws which have been enacted 
by the General Assembly of this Commonwealth, shall be in force 
within this State until they shall be altered or repealed by the General 
Assembly. 

Sec. 234. All civil officers for the State at large shall reside within 
the State, and all district, county, city, or town officers shall reside 
within their respective districts, counties, cities, or towns, and shall 
keep their offices at such places therein as may be required by law. 

Sec. 235. The salaries of public officers shall not be changed 
during the terms for which they were elected ; but it shall be the 
duty of the General Assembly to regulate, by a general law, in what 
cases and what deductions shall be made for neglect of official duties. 
This section shall apply to members of the General Assembly also. 

Sec. 236. The General Assembly shall by law prescribe the time 
when the several officers authorized or directed by this Constitution 
to be elected or appointed shall enter upon the duties of their 
respective offices, except where the time is fixed by this Constitution. 

Sec. 237. No member of Congress, or person holding or exercising 
an office of trust or profit under the United States, or any of them, 
or under any foreign power, shall be eligible to hold or exercise any 
'office of trust or profit under this Constitution, or the laws made in 
pursuance thereof. 

Sec. 238. The General Assembly shall direct by law how persons 
who now are, or may hereafter become, sureties for public officers, 
may be relieved of or discharged from suretyship. 

Sec. 239. Any person who shall, after the adoption of this Consti- 
tution, either directly or indirectly, give, accept, or knowingly carry, 
a challenge to any person or persons to fight in single combat, with a 
citizen of this State, with a deadly weapon, either in or out of the 
State, shall be deprived of the right to hold any office of honor or 



266 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 



profit in this Commonwealth ; and if said acts, or any of them, be 
committed within this State, the person or persons so committing 
them shall be further punished in such manner as the General Assem- 
bly may prescribe by law. 

Sec. 240. The governor shall have power, after five years from the 
time of the offense, to pardon any person who shall have participated 
in a duel as principal, second, or otherwise, and to restore him to all 
the rights, privileges, and immunities to which he was entitled before 
such participation. Upon presentation of such pardon, the oath 
prescribed in section two hundred and twenty-eight shall be varied to 
suit the case. 

Sec. 241. Whenever the death of a person shall result from an 
injury inflicted by negligence or wrongful act, then, in every such 
case, damages may be recovered for such death, from the corpora- 
tions and persons so causing the same. Until otherwise provided by 
law, the action to recover such damages shall in all cases be prosecuted 
by the personal representative of the deceased person. The General 
Assembly may provide how the recovery shall go, and to whom 
belong ; and, until such provision is made, the same shall form part 
of the personal estate of the deceased person. 

Sec. 242. Municipal and other corporations, and individuals in- 
vested with the privilege of taking private property for public use, 
shall make just compensation for property taken, injured, or destroyed 
by them ; which compensation shall be paid before such taking, or 
paid or secured, at the election of such corporation or individual, 
before such injury or destruction. The General Assembly shall not 
deprive any person of an appeal from any preliminary assessment of 
damages against any such corporation or individual made by commis- 
sioners or otherwise ; and, upon appeal from such preliminary assess- 
ment, the amount of such damages shall in all cases be determined by 
a jury, according to the course of the common law. 

Sec. 243. The General Assembly shall by law fix the minimum 
ages at which children may be employed in places dangerous to life or 
health, or injurious to morals, and shall provide adequate penalties for 
violations of such law. 

Sec. 244. All wage-earners in this State employed in factories, 
mines, workshops, or by corporations, shall be paid for their labor in 
lawful money. The General Assembly shall prescribe adequate pen- 
alties for violations of this section. 

Sec. 245. Upon the promulgation of this Constitution, the governor 
shall appoint three persons, learned in the law, who shall be commis- 
sioners to revise the statute laws of this Commonwealth, and prepare 
amendments thereto, to the end that the statute laws shall conform to 
and effectuate this Constitution. Such revision and amendments shall 
be laid before the next General Assembly for adoption or rejection, 
in whole or in part. The said commissioners shall be allowed ten 
dollars each per day for their services, and also necessary stationery 
for the time during which they are actually employed ; and upon their 
certificate the auditor shall draw his warrant upon the treasurer. 
They shall have the power to employ clerical assistants, at a compen- 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 267 

sation not exceeding ten dollars per day in the aggregate. If the com- 
missioners, or any of them, shall refuse to act, or a vacancy shall oc- 
cur, the governor shall appoint another or others in his or their place. 

Sec. 246. No public officer, except the governor, shall receive more 
than five thousand dollars per annum as compensation for official ser- 
vices, independent of the compensation of legally authorized deputies 
and assistants, which shall be fixed and provided for by law. The 
General Assembly shall provide for the enforcement of this section by 
suitable penalties, one of which shall be forfeiture of office by any 
person violating its provisions. 

Sec. 247. The printing and binding of the laws, journals, depart- 
ment reports, and all other public printing and binding, shall be per- 
formed under contract, to be given to the lowest responsible bidder, 
below such maximum and under such regulations as may be prescribed 
by law. No member of the General Assembly, or officer of the Com- 
monwealth, shall be in any way interested in any such contract ; and 
all such contracts shall be subject to the approval of the governor. 

Sec. 248. A grand jury shall consist of twelve persons, nine of 
whom, concurring, may find an indictment. In civil and misdemeanor 
cases, in courts inferior to the circuit courts, a jury shall consist of six 
persons. The General Assembly may provide, that, in any or all trials 
of civil actions in the circuit courts, three-fourths or more of the jurors 
concurring may return a verdict, which shall have the same force and 
effect as if rendered by the entire panel ; but where a verdict is ren- 
dered by a less number than the whole jury, it shall be signed by all 
the jurors who agree to it. 

Sec. 249. The House of Representatives of the General Assembly 
shall not elect, appoint, employ, or pay for, exceeding one chief 
clerk, one assistant clerk, one enrolling clerk, one sergeant-at-arms, 
one door-keeper, one janitor, two cloak-room keepers, and four pages ; 
and the Senate shall not elect, appoint, employ, or pay for, exceeding 
one chief clerk, one assistant clerk, one enrolling clerk, one sergeant- 
at-arms, one door-keeper, one janitor, one cloak-room keeper, and three 
pages ; and the General Assembly shall provide by general law for 
fixing the per diem or salary of all of said employees. 

Sec. 250. It shall be the duty of the General Assembly to enact 
such laws as shall be necessary and proper to decide differences by 
arbitrators, the arbitrators to be appointed by the parties who may 
choose that summary mode of adjustment. 

Sec. 251. No action shall be maintained for possession of any 
lands lying within this State, where it is necessary for the claimant to 
rely for his recovery on any grant or patent issued by the Common- 
wealth of Virginia, or by the Commonwealth of Kentucky prior to the 
year one thousand eight hundred and twenty, against any person 
claiming such lands by possession to a well-defined boundary, under a 
title of record, unless such action shall be instituted within five years 
after this Constitution shall go into effect, or within five years after the 
occupant may take possession ; but nothing herein shall be construed 
to affect any right, title, or interest in lands acquired by virtue of 
adverse possession under the laws of this Commonwealth. 



268 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 



Sec. 252. It shall be the duty of the General Assembly to provid** 
by law, as soon as practicable, for the establishment and maintenance 
of an institution or institutions for the detention, correction, instruct 
tion, and reformation of all persons under the age of eighteen years, 
convicted of such felonies and such misdemeanors as may be desig- 
nated by law. Said institution shall be known as the " House of 
Reform." 

Sec. 253. Persons convicted of felony and sentenced to confinement 
in the penitentiary shall be confined at labor within the walls of the 
penitentiary ; and the General Assembly shall not have the power to 
authorize employment of convicts elsewhere, except upon the public 
works of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, or when, during pestilence 
or in case of the destruction of the prison buildings, they cannot be 
confined in the penitentiary. 

Sec. 254. The Commonwealth shall maintain control of the disci- 
pline, and provide for all supplies, and for the sanitary condition of 
the convicts, and the labor only of convicts may be leased. 

Sec. 255. The seat of government shall continue in the city of 
Frankfort, unless removed by a vote of two-thirds of each House of 
the first General Assembly which convenes after the adoption of this 
Constitution. 

Mode of Revision. 

Sec. 256. Amendments to this Constitution may be proposed in 
either House of the General Assembly at a regular session ; and if 
such amendment or amendments shall be agreed to by three-fifths of 
all the members elected to each House, such proposed amendment or 
amendments, with the yeas and nays of the members of each House 
taken thereon, shall be entered in full in their respective journals. 
Then such proposed amendment or amendments shall be submitted to 
the voters of the State for their ratification or rejection at the next 
general election for members of the House of Representatives, the 
vote to be taken thereon in such manner as the General Assembly may 
provide, and to be certified by the officers of election to the secretary 
of state in such manner as shall be provided by law, which vote shall 
be compared and certified by the same board authorized by law to 
conipare the polls and give certificates of election to officers for the 
State at large. If it shall appear that a majority of the votes cast for 
and. against an amendment at said election was for the amendment, 
then the same shall become a part of the Constitution of this Common- 
wealth, and shall be so proclaimed by the governor, and published in 
such manner as the General Assembly may direct. Said amendments 
shall not be submitted at an election which occurs less than ninety 
days from the final passage of such proposed amendment or amend- 
ments. Not more than two amendments shall be voted upon at any 
one time, nor shall the same amendment be again submitted within 
five years after a submission. Said amendments shall be so submitted 
as to allow a separate vote on each, and no amendment shall relate to 
more than one subject ; but no amendment shall be proposed by the 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 269 

first General Assembly which convenes after the adoption of this Con- 
stitution. The approval of the governor shall not be necessar}- to any 
bill, order, resolution, or vote of the General Assembly, proposing an 
amendment or amendments to this Constitution. 

Sec. 257, Before an amendment shall be submitted to a vote, the 
secretary of state shall cause such proposed amendment, and the time 
that the same is to be voted upon, to be published at least ninety days 
before the vote is to be taken thereon in such manner as may be pre- 
scribed by law. 

Sec. 258. When a majority of all the members elected to each 
House of the General Assembly shall concur by a yea and nay vote, 
to be entered upon their respective journals, in enacting a law to take 
the sense of the people of the State as to the necessity and expediency 
of calling a convention for the purpose of revising or amending this 
Constitution and such amendments as may have been made to the 
same, such law shall be spread upon their respective journals. If the 
next General Assembly shall in like manner concur in such law, it 
shall provide for having a poll opened in each voting precinct in this 
State by the officers provided by law for holding general elections at 
the next ensuing regular election to be held for State officers or mem- 
bers of the House of Representatives, which does not occur within 
ninety days from the final passage of such law, at which time and 
places the votes of the qualified voters shall be taken for and against 
calling the convention, in the same manner provided by law for taking 
votes in other State elections. The vote for and against said proposi- 
tion shall be certified to the secretary of state by the same officers and 
in the same manner as in State elections. If it shall appear that 
a majority voting on the proposition was for calling a convention, and 
if the total number of votes cast for the calling of the convention is 
equal to one-fourth of the number of qualified voters who voted at the 
last preceding general election in this State, the secretary of state 
shall certify the same to the General Assembly at its next regular 
session, at which session a law shall be enacted calling a convention to 
readopt, revise, or amend this Constitution and such amendments as 
may have been made thereto. 

Sec. 259. The convention shall consist of as many delegates as 
there are members of the House of Representatives ; and the delegates 
shall have the same qualifications and be elected from the same dis- 
tricts as said Representatives. 

Sec. 260. Delegates to such convention shall be elected at the next 
general State election after the passage of the act calling the conven- 
tion, which does not occur within less than ninety days ; and they shall 
meet within ninety days after their election at the Capital of the State, 
and continue in session until their work is completed. 

Sec. 261. The General Assembly, in the act calling the convention, 
shall provide for comparing the polls and giving certificates of election 
to the delegates elected, and provide for their compensation. 

Sec. 262. The convention, when assembled, shall be the judge of 
the election and qualification of its members, and shall determine con- 
tested elections ; but the General Assembly shall, in the act calling 



270 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 

the convention, provide for taking testimony in such cases, and for 
issuing a writ of election in case of a tie. 

Sec. 263. Before a vote is taken upon the question of calling- a con- 
vention, the secretary of state shall cause notice of the election to be 
published in such manner as may be provided by the act directing said 
vote to be taken. 

Schedule. 

That no inconvenience may arise from the alterations and amend- 
ments made in this Constitution, and in order to carry the same into 
complete operation, it is hereby declared and ordained : — 

1. That all laws of this Commonwealth in force at the time of the 
adoption of this Constitution, not inconsistent therewith, shall remain 
in full force until altered or repealed by the General Assembly ; and all 
rights, actions, prosecutions, claims, and contracts of the State, coun- 
ties, individuals, or bodies corporate, not inconsistent therewith, shall 
continue as valid as if this Constitution had not been adopted. The 
provisions of all laws which are inconsistent with this Constitution shall 
cease upon its adoption, except that all laws which are inconsistent with 
such provisions as require legislation to enforce them shall remain in 
force until such legislation is had, but not longer than six years after 
the adoption of this Constitution, unless sooner amended or repealed 
by the General Assembly. 

2. That all recognizances, obligations, and all other instruments 
entered into or executed before the adoption of this Constitution, to 
the State, or to any city, town, county, or subdivision thereof, and all 
fines, taxes, penalties, and forfeitures due or owing to this State, or to 
any city, town, county, or subdivision thereof ; and all writs, prosecu- 
tions, actions and causes of action, except as otherwise herein provided, 
shall continue and remain unaffected by the adoption of this Constitu- 
tion ; and all indictments which shall have been found, or may hereafter 
be found, for any crime or offense committed before this Constitution 
takes effect, may be prosecuted as if no change had taken place, except 
as otherwise provided in this Constitution. 

3. All circuit, chancery, criminal, law and equity, law, and common 
pleas courts, as now constituted and organized by law, shall continue 
with their respective jurisdictions until the judges of the circuit courts 
provided for in this Constitution shall have been elected and qualified, 
and shall then cease and determine ; and the causes, actions, and pro- 
ceedings then pending in said first-named courts, which are discontin- 
ued by this Constitution, shall be transferred to, and tried by, the circuit 
courts in the counties, respectively, in which said causes, actions, and 
proceedings are pending. 

4. The treasurer, attorney-general, auditor of public accounts, super- 
intendent of public instruction, and register of the land office, elected 
in eighteen hundred and ninety-one, shall hold their offices until the 
first Monday in January, eighteen hundred and ninety-six, and until 
the election and qualification of their successors. The governor and 
lieutenant-governor elected in eighteen hundred and ninety-one shall 



CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 27 1 

hold their offices until the sixth Tuesday after the first Monday in 
November, eighteen hundred and ninety-five, and until their succes- 
sors are elected and qualified. The governor and treasurer elected in 
eighteen hundred and ninety-one shall be ineligible to the succeeding 
term. The governor elected in eighteen hundred and ninety-one may 
appoint a secretary of state and a commissioner of agriculture, labor, 
and statistics, as now provided, who shall hold their offices until their 
successors are elected and qualified, unless sooner removed by the gov- 
ernor. The official bond of the present treasurer shall be renewed at 
the expiration of two years from the time of his qualification. 

5. All officers who may be in office at the adoption of this Constitu- 
tion, or who may be elected before the election of their successors, a? 
provided in this Constitution, shall hold their respective offices until 
their successors are elected or appointed and qualified as provided in 
this Constitution. 

6. The quarterly courts created by this Constitution shall be the 
successors of the present statutory quarterly courts in the several coun- 
ties of this State ; and all suits, proceedings, prosecutions, records, and 
judgments now pending or being in said last-named courts, shall, after 
the adoption of this Constitution, be transferred to the quarterly courts 
created by this Constitution, and shall proceed as though the same had 
been therein instituted. 

Ordinance. 

We, the representatives of the people of Kentucky, in Convention 
assembled, in their name and by their authority and in virtue of the 
power vested in us as delegates from the counties and districts respec- 
tively affixed to our names, do ordain and proclaim the foregoing to be 
the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Kentucky from and after 
this date. 

Done at Frankfort this twenty-eighth day of September, in the year 
of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and ninety-one, and in 
the ninety-ninth* year of the Commonwealth. 

CASSIUS M. CLAY, Jr., 
President of the Conventio7i, and Member from the County 
of Bourbon. 

THOMAS G. POORE, 

Secretary. 

* Error : should be " one hundredth." 



2/2 CONSTITUTION OF KENTUCKY 



Amendment of 1902, added to Section 181. 

And the General Assembly may, by general laws only, authorize 
cities or towns of any class to provide for taxation for municipal purposes 
on personal property, tangible and intangible, based on income, licenses 
or franchises, in lieu of an ad valore»i tax thereon : p7'ovided, cities 
of the first class shall not be authorized to omit the imposition of an 
ad valorem tax on such property of any steam railroad, street railway, 
ferry, bridge, gas, water, heating, telephone, telegraph, electric light 
or electric power company. 



INDEX 



Abolition movement, opposition to and effect 
of, 152, 153; extreme disapproval of, 154, 
155; war a necessity for, 173; favored by 
Congress, 186; slavery abolished in Dis- 
trict of Columbia, 186; Emancipation Proc- 
lamation issued, 196; Thirteenth Amend- 
ment passed, 203. 

Act of Separation, first, 62, 63; second, 66. 

Adair, Major John, defeated at Fort St. Clair, 
97; at battle of the Thames, 125; elected 
governor, 129. 

Adams, John Quincy, elected President, 134. 

Adams, Major George M., elected to Con- 
gress, 207. 

Adventures of Colonel Daniel Boone, by 
John Filson, 56. 

Agricultural and Mechanical College estab- 
lished, 213. 

Alabama secedes, 162. 

Alexander, Robert, president of Bank of Ken- 
tucky, 113. 

Alford, Mitchell Cary, elected lieutenant gov- 
ernor, 218. 

Alien and Sedition laws, passed, 105; Ken- 
tucky's opposition to, 105-108; repealed, 
109. 

Allen, Alfred, Conservative nominee for 
treasurer, 206. 

Allen, John, delegate to seventh convention, 
77; counsel for Burr, in; candidate for 
governor, 114; commands militia, 117; 
killed at Frenchtown, 119, 120; county 
named after, 120. 

Amendments, Thirteenth ratified, 203; Four- 
teenth and Fifteenth ratified, 209. 

American Colonization Society, 152. 

American commerce interfered with, 116. 

American, or Know-Nothing party, 157, 158. 

Anderson, Major Robert, commander at Fort 
Sumter, 166; commander of Kentucky Fed- 
erals, 176; issues proclamation of protec- 
tion, 178. 

Anderson, Richard C, member of Anti-Relief 
party, 129. 

Andrews, Judge L. W., member of Opposi- 
tion party, 159. 

Annexation of Texas, Clay's opposition to, 
144; its effect, 156. 

KENT. HIST. — 18 27 



Anti-Federalists, 99, too. 

Anti-Relief party, organized, 129; becomes 

Old Court party, 134. 
Antislavery, see Abolition movement. 
Appellate courts, judges for, 217. 
Appomattox Courthouse, Lee's surrender at, 

203. 
Army of Northern Virginia, surrender of, 203. 
Arnold, Captain John, in War of 1812, 118. 
Artistic productions in Kentucky, 137. 
Associations of tobacco growers, 225. 
Athens of the West, Lexington's nickname, 

55- 
Atlantic States impoverished by Revolution, 

51- 

Baker, R. T., Republican nominee for lieu- 
tenant governor, 206. 

Ballard, Bland, United States district judge, 
179, 180. 

Bank charters, granted, 128; repealed, 129. 

Bankof Kentucky, chartered, 113, 128; estab- 
lished, 143. 

Bank of Louisville, established, 143. 

Bank of the Commonwealth, chartered, 129, 
130; its currency destroyed, 134. 

Banks of the United States, established at 
Louisville and Kentucky, 134; Jackson 
vetoes bill of recharter, 143. 

Baptists in Kentucky, 84. 

Barbour, James, commissioner at Logan's 
fort, 37. 

Barbour, Major Philip N., killed at Monterey, 
146. 

Barclay, Commodore, defeated by Perry, 122, 
123. 

Bardstown, one of Kentucky's earliest towns, 
55, 84. 

Barlow, Thomas Harris, constructs model 
railroad, 137. 

Barlow's Planetarium. 137. 

Barnes, S. M., Republican nominee for gov- 
ernor, 206. 

Barry, Major William T., his oratorical influ- 
ence, 124, 125; favors Relief party, 129; 
elected lieutenant governor, 129; elected 
chief justice, 132; candidate for governor, 
135- 



274 



INDEX 



Bear Wallow, General Morgan's forces at, 

i88. 
Beauregard, General, reenforces Johnston, 

183. 
Beck, James B., elected U. S. senator, 214; 

reelected, 215. 
Beckham, J. C. W., lieutenant governor, 221, 
222; governor, 222, 223; Democratic can- 
didate for U. S. senator, 224. 
Bell, Joshua F., statesman, 159; delegate to 

Peace Conference, 165. 
Benton, Mortimer M., nominee for judge, 201. 
Bibb, George M., chief justice, 113; member 

Relief party, 129. 
Big Bone Lick, early exploration of, 15. 
Big Creek Gap, Kentucky invaded at, 190. 
Bill, of repeal of court of appeals, 132; Com- 
promise, 134, 135; Omnibus, 155, 156. 
Bi-partisan boards, 224. 
Bird, Captain Henry, captures Ruddle's and 

Martin's stations, 39. 
Bivouac of the Dead, by Theodore O'Hara, 

148. 
Blackburn, Dr. Luke Pryor, elected gov- 
ernor, 214. 
Blackburn, Gideon, president of Center Col- 
lege, 210. 
Blackburn, J. C. S., elected U. S. senator, 
215; Democratic caucus nominee for U. S. 
senator, 220; elected U. S. senator, 221. 
Blackburn, William B., Anti-Relief candi- 
date, 131. 
Blennerhasset, Burr's accomplice, no; his 

death in disgrace, 112. 
Blue Licks, Boone's expedition to, 34, 35; 

battle of, 120. 
Blythe, Dr., president of Transylvania Uni- 
versity, iiS. 
Board of War established, 87, 88. 
Boiling Springs, delegates from, 21, 22. 
Boone, Daniel, pioneer in Kentucky, 12; 
captured by Indians, 13; rescues survey- 
ors, 16; cuts roads through Kentucky, 19, 
21; his influence in settling Kentucky, 19; 
his family settles in Kentucky, 23; his 
character, 24; captured by Indians, 34, 35; 
appointed lieutenant colonel, 40; at Blue 
Licks, 46, 47; his intercourse with Filson, 
56. 
Boone, Jemima, captured by Indians, 26, 27. 
Boone, Squire, joins Daniel in Kentucky, 13. 
Boonesborough, settled, 21; parliament at, 
22; fort at, 22, 23; Indian attacks on, 30, 
32> 35, 36, 42; school opened at, 38; one of 
oldest towns, 55. 
Border States, attempt at compromise, 162, 
163; proposed convention of, 163. 



Boswell, Colonel, commander of volunteers, 

121. 
Botanical gardens at Lexington, projected by 

Rafinesque, 137. 
Bourbon County, one of original nine coun- 
ties, 84. 
Bowling Green, headquarters of western Con- 
federate army, 177; seat of Confederate 
government, 180; evacuated by Confed- 
erates, 182. 
Bowman, John, member of first Harrodsburg 
court, 29, 30; colonel of Kentucky County, 
30. 
Boyd, Linn, death of, 189. 
Boyle, General Jeremiah T., military com- 
mandant, 187, 188; his resignation, 198. 
Boyle, John, chief justice, 130. 
Bradford, John and Fielding, issue Keiitucke 

Gazette, 72. 
Bradford, John, address of welcome to Gov- 
ernor Shelby, 94. 
Bradley, W. O., Republican candidate for 
governor, 216; first Republican governor 
of Kentucky, 219-221; elected U. S. sena- 
tor, 224. 
Bragg-, Colonel Braxton, commands Chatta- 
nooga forces, 189; his march through Ken- 
tucky, 191; his retreat, 192, 193. 
Bramlette, Thomas Elliott, elected governor, 

196. 
Breathitt, John, elected governor, 136. 
Breckinridge, John, president of Lexington 
Democratic Club, 99; appointed attorney- 
general, 102; offers Kentucky Resolutions, 
107; appointed speaker, 109. 
Breckinridge, John C, oration over Ken- 
tucky soldiers, 148; elected Vice President, 
158; in favor of State convention, 163, 164: 
elected U. S. senator, 165; Confederate 
general, 179; superseded by Davis, 180. 
Breckinridge, Mrs. Issa Desha, organizes 

Hart Memorial Association, 139, n. i. 
Breckinridge, Robert, votes for Federal con- 
stitution, 74; chosen speaker, 95. 
Breckinridge, Rev. R. J., calms riot, 132, 
133; president of Radical Union conven- 
tion, 201, 202. 
Breckinridge, William L., president of Center 

College, 210. 
British, claims in Kentucky, 32; stations in 
America, 59; intrigue in Kentucky, 82, 83; 
possessions surrendered, 100, loi ; soldiers 
captured in Canada, 124. 
Brodhead, Daniel, opens store at Louisville, 

54- 
Brown, James, appointed secretary of state, 

95- 



INDEX 



275 



Bro\vn,John, member, from Kentucky, of Con- 
gress of Confederation of States, 73 ; letter 
to sixth convention, 75; member of Board 
of War, 87; elected U. S. senator, 96. 
Brown, Jolin Mason, author of Political Be- 
ginnings of Kentucky, 73, n. i. 
Brown, John Young, elected governor, 218; 

candidate for governor, 222. 
Brown, Rev. John H., address on Kentucky 

soldiers, 148. 
Brown, Scott, adjutant general, 170, 179. 
Bryan, James W., lieutenant governor, 216. 
Bryan,William J. .candidate for President, 220. 
Bryan's Station attacked, 43-46. 
Buchanan, James, elected President, 158. 
Buckner, General Simon B., inspector of 
State Guards, 170; leader of State Guards, 
177; Confederatecommander,i82; governor, 
216; candidate for Vice President, 220. 
Buckner, Judge R. A., Sr. member of Anti- 
Relief party, 129; candidate for governor, 136. 
Buckner, Judge R. A., member of Opposition 

party, 159; Unionist, 169. 
Buell, General Don Carlos, commander of 
Kentucky forces, 181; commander of Fed- 
eral troops, 183; reenforces Grant, 184; in 
central Tennessee, 190; enters Louisville, 
191; avoids Confederates, 192. 
Buena Vista, battle of, 146. 
Bull Run, battle of, 174. 

Bullitt, Alexander Scott, chosen speaker, 95; 
president of second convention, 108; elected 
lieutenant governor, 109. 
Bullitt, Captain Thomas, surveyor in Ken- 
tucky, 15. 
Bullock, Rice, votes for Federal constitution, 

74- 
Burbridge, General Steven G., commander of 
Kentucky forces, 198; his oppressive mili- 
tary rule, 199, 200; interferes with elec- 
tions, 201 ; deposed, 202. 
Burnam, Judge C. F., member of Opposition 
party, 159; member of Unionist party, 169; 
joins Republicans, 207. 
Burnett, Henry C, U.S. representative in Con- 
gress of 1 861, 170; delegate to Virginia, 180. 
Burr, Aaron, his conspiracy, no; indicted by 
Daveiss, in; festivities in his honor, 112; 
his trial and disgrace, 112. 
Bush, Joseph H., artist, 138. 
Butler, General Richard, killed at Wabash 

River, 89. 
Butler, General William O., Democratic nom- 
inee for governor, 144; his military exploits, 
144; in Mexican War, 145; wounded at 
Monterey, 146; delegate to Peace Confer- 
ence, 165. ' 



j Cahokia, French village, yz. 
Caldwell and McKee's army, 42, 43. 
Caldwell, Colonel, commands regiment, lai. 
California applies for admission, 156. 
Call, Richard Ellsworth, author of Life of 

C. S. Rafinesque, 137, n. i. 
Callaway, Richard, member of first Harrods- 
burg court, 29, 30; his daughter captured 
by Indians, 26, 27. 
Camp Boone, Confederate regiments at, 173. 
Camp Clay, Federal regiments at, 173. 
Camp Dick Robinson, Federal regiments at 

174. 
Camp Joe Holt, Federal regiments at, 173. 
Camp Wild Cat, battle of, 180. 
Canada, march of Harrison's army into, 124, 

125. 
Cantrill, James E., elected lieutenant gov- 
ernor, 214. 
Capitol, built in 1905-1909, 226. 
Carlisle, John G., elected lieutenant gov- 
ernor, 210; secretary of treasury, against 
free silver, 219. 
Catholics in Kentucky, 84. 
Centenary of Kentucky, by Durrett, 29, 

n. I. 
Centenary of Kentucky's admission, cele- 
brated, 217, 218. 
Center College chartered by Presbyterians, 

210. 
Cerro Gordo, attack on, 147. 
Chamberlin, Jeremiah, president of Center 

College, 210. 
Change of party names, 141. 
Characteristics of Kentuckians, 62. 
Charters of banks, granted and repealed, 128, 

129. 
Chattanooga, Confederate forces organized at, 

189. 
Cherokees, claim Kentucky, 20; fear of their 

invasion, 60; treaty with English, 20. 
Chillicothe, Indian settlement at, 35. 
Christian church in Kentucky, 85. 
Cincinnati, original town on site of, 56; pro- 
posed capture of, 190. 
Circuit courts, increase in number of, 217. 
Citizenship, negroes obtain right of, 209. 
Civil affairs in Kentucky, 141-150. 
Civil conflicts in Kentucky, 196-204. 
Civil War, 151-204. 

Clark, General George Rogers, expedition into 
Illinois country, 33, 34; attack on Indian 
towns, 40; reported attack on Shawnee 
Indians, 42, 43; commander in attack 
on Indians, 48; retires, 60; attack on 
Wabash Indians, 65; accepts commission 
as major general, 100. 



2'j6 



INDEX 



Clark, James, declares Replevin Act uncon- 
stitutional, 130; elected governor, 141. 
Clark County citizens against Alien and Sedi- 
tion laws, 106, 107. 
Clarksville, gathering against Indians at, 64. 
Clay, Brigadier General Green, commander 

of Kentucky volunteers, 121. 
Clay, Cassius M., leader of antislavery 
movement, 154; abolition nominee for gov- 
ernor, 157. 
Clay, Cassius M., Jr. candidate for Demo- 
cratic nomination for governor, 219. 
Clay, Henry, opposes Alien and Sedition 
laws, 107; counsel for Aaron Burr, iii; 
debate with Daveiss, 112; speech at George- 
town, 118; his temporary disfavor in Ken- 
tucky, 134, 135; his Compromise Bill or 
Omnibus Bill, 135, 155, 156; elected to 
U. S. Senate, 135; candidate for presidency, 
136, 144; opposes annexation of Texas, 
144; president of American Colonization So- 
ciety, 152; his resignation from Senate, 157. 
Clay, James B., delegate to Peace Conference, 

165; arrest of, 178. 
Clay, Lieutenant Colonel Henry, in Mexican 

War, 145; killed at Buena Vista, 146. 
Cleveland, Grover, elected President, 215; his 
second term, 218; his policy against free 
silver, 219. 
College of Electors, 89. 
Columbus, Confederates at, 175; evacuated 

by Confederates, 182. 
Commerce, interference with American, 116. 
Commissioners, elected by House of Repre- 
sentatives, 96. 
Committee of sixty, confiscate The True 

Amertcan, 154, 155. 
Compromise, Crittenden's attempt at, 162, 
163; Border States attempt at, 162, 163; 
futility of efforts towards, 165. 
Compromise or Omnibus Bill, Clay's, 134, 

135. 155, 156- 

Confederate Colonies' struggle for mdepend- 
ence, 50. 

Confederate forces, in Kentucky, 173-175; 
resolutions against, 175, 176; Kentuckians 
join ranks of, 178; arrest of prominent 
citizens, 178; abandon Kentucky, 193; 
return to Kentucky, 205. 

Confederate government of Kentucky, organ- 
ized, 174, 180, 181. 

Confederate line of possession, 181. 

Confederate States of America, government 
framed, 165; Kentucky desires admission 
to, 173- 

Congress of Confederation of States, course in 
regard to Indian troubles, 60, 64. 



Congress, proposes treaty with Spain, 70; 
hears Kentucky's petition for admission, 
73; considers adoption of new Federal 
constitution, 73, 74; Kentucky's applica- 
tion referred to new, 75; Muter advises 
new appeal to, 77; Wilkinson's speech 
against, 78; delay in granting Kentucky 
its statehood, 82; passes Alien and Sedi- 
tion laws, 105; act of denounced by Clay, 
107; special session called, 170; favors 
abolition, 186; adopts obnoxious military 
policy, 187; frees wives of negro soldiers, 
208. 
Connolly, Dr. John, orders survey of Louis- 
ville, 15; British agent, 82, 83. 
Conservative party, in temporary power, 
134; called Conservative Union party, 
159; opposed to laws against slavery, 
167; controls elections of 1863, 196; wel- 
comes the Confederates, 205; its downfall, 
206. 
Conservative Union conventions against Lin- 
coln, 202. 
Conspiracies in Kentucky, First Spanish, 69- 
'81; British, 82, 83; French, 99, 100; Second 
Spanish, loi; Third Spanish, 105; Aaron 
Burr's, no. 
Constitution, Federal, adopted, 74; Thirteenth 
Amendment adopted, 203; Fourteenth and 
Fifteenth Amendments adopted, 209. 
Constitution of Kentucky, first, 89; second, 
108; third, 150; fourth, 216, 217; text of, 
227-272. 
Constitutional convention, at Danville, 89; 

of 1890, 216, 217. 
Continental Congress, 29. 
Convention for independence, first, 61 ; second, 
62; third, 62; fourth, 62, 65; fifth, 73; 
sixth, 75, 76; seventh, delegates to, 76; 
.seventh, meeting of, 77, 78; eighth, 83; 
ninth, 83; tenth, 83, 89. 
Convention for considering secession, pro- 
posed, 163, 164. 
Convention, for revising State constitution 
called, 105; from seceded States at Mont- 
gomery, 165; constitutional, in 1890, 216, 
217. 
Coomes, Mrs. William, opens school at Har- 

rodsburg, 38. 
Cornstalk, chief of Shawnee Indians, 16-18. 
Cornwallis' surrender, 50. 
Corporations, legal provisions for, 217. 
Council of war in 1812, 123. 
Country party, in struggle for independence, 
63; at time of Spanish conspiracy, 76; at 
Fayette election, 77; claims in seventh 
convention, 78. 



INDEX 



277 



County of Kentucky, established, 29-39; 
population in 1777, 32; division of the 
county, 40-49. 

Court of appeals, 96; decision as to Replevin 
Act, 130; judges attempt to remove, 131, 
132; newly organized, 132; abolished, 134. 

Court party, in struggle for independence, 
63; at time of Spanish conspiracy, 76; at 
Fayette election, 77; claims in seventh 
convention, 78; further efforts after separa- 
tion, 79. 

Cowan, John, intercourse with Filson, 56. 

Cowpens, battle of, 91. 

Cox, Colonel, 121. 

Cox, W. H., lieutenant governor, 224. 

Craddock, J. J., Conservative nominee for 
register, 206. 

Craig, John, trustee of Transylvania Univer- 
sity, 57. 

Craig, Rev. Lewis, preaches in Kentucky, 
84. 

Criminal code revised, 105. 

Crisis in Kentucky history, 80. 

Crittenden, General George B., defeated at 
Mill Springs, 181. 

Crittenden, Major General Thomas L., ap- 
pointed commander of militia, 176; reen- 
forces Federals, 192. 

Crittenden, Major John J., his oratorical 
influence, 124, 125; member Anti-Relief 
party, 129; elected governor, 149; his 
career, 149; leader of Whig party, 157; 
type of Conservative Unionists, 159; offers 
compromise propositions, 162; address on 
Union standpoint, 165; leaves Senate, 165; 
speech for neutrality, 166; Union delegate 
to Congress, 170; his influence in holding 
Kentucky loyal, 170, 171 ; opposed to aboli- 
tion, 186. 

Crockett, Colonel Joseph, delegate to seventh 
convention, 77; obtains signatures against 
illegal separation, 79. 

Crow's Station (Danville), courthouse built 
near, 52, 53; meeting of University trus- 
tees at, 57. 

Cumberland Gap, Confederate forces near, 
175- 

Currency, its development in early days, 
128. 

Currency question, an issue in Kentucky, 
219; Democrats divided on account of free 
silver question, 220. 

Cynthiana, conflict at, 189. 

Daniel, Walker, attorney-general of Ken- 
tucky District, 52; trustee of Transylvania 
University, 57; killed by Indians, 52. 



Danville, founding of, 53; one of Kentucky's 
oldest towns, 55; meeting of military offi- 
cers at, 60, 61 ; meeting of separation con- 
ventions at, 61-63; navigation question dis- 
cussed at, 71; political club founded at, 74; 
sixth convention at, 75; tenth convention 
at, 89. 

" Dark and Bloody Ground," Kentucky's 
nickname, 11. 

Daveiss, Joseph Hamilton, indicts Aaron 
Burr, in; debate with Henry Clay, 112; 
death at Tippecanoe, 115; county named 
after, 115. 

Davidge, Rezin H., associate justice, 132. 

Davis, Garrett, appointed U. S. senator, 180; 
opposed to abolition, 186; represents Ken- 
tucky in U. S. Senate, 209. 

Davis, Jefferson, born in Todd County, Ken- 
tucky, 161 ; elected president of Confeder- 
ate States of America, 165. 

Dawson, J. A., elected register, 207. 

De Quindre, Captain, at Boonesborough, 36. 

De Soto's expedition to the Mississippi, 69. 

Deboe, W. J., first Republican \J. S. senator 
from Kentucky, 221. 

Declaration of Independence adopted, 29. 

Defeat at Camden, Gates's, 90. 

Democrat, published in Louisville, 159. 

Democratic party, opposed to Federalists, 99; 
strong in Kentucky, 108, 109; of 1798, 131; 
Democratic Republican party merged into, 
143; its supremacy in Kentucky, 158; views 
at time of secession, 163, 164; belief in 
State Rights, 167; opposed to laws against 
slavery, 167; convention against Lincoln, 
202 ; in power after the war, 205-207 ; Con- 
servatives unite with, 206; Freedmen's 
Bureau strengthens power, 209; majority re- 
duced on account of negro vote, 210; its 
continued power in Kentucky, 215, 216, 218, 
221; divided on currency question, 220; di- 
vided on Goebel election law, 221 ; admin- 
istrations of Governor Beckham, 222, 223. 

Democratic Republican party, rise and fall in 
power, 135, 136; merged into Democratic 
party, £43. 

Democratic State convention at Frankfort, 
206; at Louisville, 218, 219. 

Democratic Union party, in election of 1864, 
200. 

Denman, Matthias, partner of Filson, 156. 

Denominational colleges in Kentucky, 210. 

Denton, Thomas, settles at Harrodsburg, 23. 

Depression, financial, 127, 128, 143, 218. 

Desha, General Joseph, at battle of the 
Thames, 125; member of Relief party, 129; 
elected governor, 131. 



2/8 



INDEX 



District of Columbia, slavery abolished in, 
i86. 

District of Kentucky, 50-58. 

Dixon, Archibald, elected U. S. senator, 157. 

Doctrine of nullification, anticipated in Ken- 
tucky, 107. 

Doctrine of State Rights, 107, 108. 

Donelson, Fort, surrender of, 182. 

Doniphan, Joseph, opens school at Boones- 
borough, 38. 

Donne, Mrs. Martha, 54. 

Douglas, James, surveyor in Kentucky, 15. 

Dudley, Colonel, at Maumee, 121; defeated 
by Proctor, 122. 

Dudley, William A., appointed quartermas- 
ter general, 179. 

Duncan, Colonel Blanton, Confederate com- 
mander, 174. 

Dunlap, George W., Union delegate to Con- 
gress, 170. 

Dunmore, governor of Virginia, 16. 

Durrett, Reuben T., author of Centenary of 
Kentucky, 29, n. i ; author of Life of John 
Filson,'^^,-^.. \\ arrest of, 178; president of 
Filson Club, 215. 

Duvall, Judge Alvin, nominee for reelection, 
200. 

Edmonson, county named after, 120. 
Education in Kentucky, early, 38, 57; at 

close of war, 210, 211; higher education, 

213, 214. 
Edwards, John, in seventh convention, 79; 

elected U. S. senator, 96. 
Edwards, Ninian, chief justice and governor 

of Illinois, 113. 
Eighth independence convention, 83. 
Election, method of, 90; change in method, 

108, 109. 
Elkhorn, first steamboat on the, 102. 
Emancipation, see Abolition movement. 
Emancipation Proclamation issued, 196. 
Emancipation ticket, first, 157. 
English, claims in Kentucky, 14; hostility 

to Kentuckians, 32; settle Jamestown, 69; 

bitter feeling against, 98; anticipate war 

with U. S., 114; at war with France, 116; 

insults to American vessels, 116. 
Episcopalians in Kentucky, 85. 
Era of transition, 213-225. 
Estill, Captain, defeat of, 42, 43. 
Executive power vested in governor, 89; 

changes in executive State department, 217. 
Expedition against New Orleans, 99, 100. 

Factories, establishment of, 127. 
Fallen Timbers, battle of, 100. 



Fayette County, established, 40; proposed 
attack on, 43; part of Kentucky District, 
51; election at, 77; Connolly's intrigue in, 
83; one of original nine counties, 84. 

Federal constitution, adoption of new, 73, 74. 

Federal government, Wilkinson prejudices 
Kentucky against, 70, 71; hears of French 
conspiracy, 100; Kentucky's opposition to, 
loi, 102; its powers, 151; Kentucky de- 
clares for, 175. 

Federalist party, opposed to Anti-Federalists, 
99; opposed by Kentuckians, 102; in tem- 
porary power, 102; opposed to Democrats, 
109; Daveiss adheres to, iii; in 1798, 

131- 

Federals, their forces in Kentucky, 173-175; 
soldiers from Kentucky, 179, 194; antag- 
onism to, 186, 187; as raiders, 198; attempt 
to control elections, 200. 

Ferguson, his army destroyed, 91. 

Field, John, commander at Point Pleasant, 17. 

Field, Lieutenant Colonel Ezekiel H., in 
Mexican War, 145. 

" Fiery Cross, The," Scotch symbol, 46, n. i. 

Fifteenth Amendment ratified, 209. 

Fifth independence convention, 73. 

Fillmore's cabinet, 149. 

Filson, John, author of first history of Ken- 
tucky, 55-57. 

Filson Club, started, 215, 216; its publica- 
tions, 21, n. 2, 29, n. I, 74, n. i, 216. 

Financial depression, 127, 128, 143, 218. 

Financial prosperity, 128, 208, 211. 

Fincastle County, Kentucky a part of, 29. 

Findley, John, pioneer in Kentucky, 12. 

Finnel, John W., appointed adjutant general, 

179- 

First constitutional convention, 107. 

First governor of Kentucky, 90-92. 

First independence convention, 61. 

First invasion of Kentucky, 173-185. 

First newspaper in Kentucky, 72. 

First organized church in Kentucky, 84. 

Fisk, John F., elected to Senate, 189. 

Fitch, John, inventor of steamboat, 84, 103. 

Fleming, William, commander at Point Pleas- 
ant, 17; commissioner at Logan's fort, 

37- 
Florida, discovered by Ponce de Leon, 69; 

secedes, 162. 
Floyd, John, surveyor in Kentucky, 14, 15; 

member of first Harrodsburg court, 29, 30; 

appointed colonel, 40; rescued by Wells, 

41, 42; attack on Indians, 48; elected 
I 'judge, 51; killed by Indians, 52. 

Floyd, Gener.il John B., Confederate com- 
' mander, 182. 



IxNDEX 



79 



Fort Donelson, surrender of, 182. 

Fort Greenville, built, 97. 

Fort Henry, surrender of, 182. 

Fort Meigs, siege of, 121. 

Fort Recovery, General Wayne at, 100. 

Fort Stanwix, treaty of, 14. 

Fort Sumter, first gun fired at, 165. 

Founding of the Commonwealth, 93-150. 

Fourteenth Amendment ratified, 209. 

Fourth independence convention, 62, 65. 

Frankfort, made capital of Kentucky, 96, 97 ; 
constitutional convention at, 108; heroes 
of Buena Vista buried at, 148; Democratic 
State convention at, 206. 

Frazer, Oliver, pupil of Jouett, 138. 

Free silver, adherents and opponents to doc- 
trine of, 2ig, 220. 

Free students in State University, how ap- 
pointed, 214. 

Freedmen's Bureau, established, 208; opposi- 
tion to, 209. 

French, claims in Kentucky, 14, 32; attack 
Boonesborough, 35, 36; their religious per- 
secutions, 69; declare war against England, 
Spain, and Holland, 98; conspiracy in Ken- 
tucky, 99; war with England, 116. 

French and Indian War, id, 32. 

French Revolution, its horrors unknown in 
Kentucky, 99; revulsion of feeling in regard 
to, 102. 

Frenchtown, battles of, 118, 119, 120. 

Friends of Humanity, Christian Association, 
112, 113. 

Fry, Colonel Speed Smith, Federal com- 
mander, 181. 

Fry, Major Gary H., in Mexican War, 145. 

Gaines, Major John P., in Mexican War, 145. 
•Gardoqui, Spanish minister, rejects Jay's 

proposition, 7'^; Brown's interview with, 75. 
Garrard, Colonel J. J., commander of Federal 

forces, 180. 
Garrard County, Federal forces in, 174. 
Garrard, James, second governor of Kentucky, 

105; elected governor, 109. 
Gates's defeat at Camden, 90. 
General Assembly in Kentucky government, 

89; grants school suffrage to women, 211. 
Genet, Citizen, minister of France, 99; re- 
called to France, 100. 
Geological survey established, 211. 
Georgetown, incorporation of, 23; Democratic 

Club at, 99; Kentucky forces assembled at, 

iiy. 
Georgia secedes, 162. 

Girty, Simon, the " White Renegade," 45. 
Gist, Christopher, pioneer in Kentucky, 12. 



Glasgow, General Bragg at, 191. 

Goebel, William, State senator, 221; nomi- 
nated for governor, 221; assassinated, 222; 
governor, 222. 

Gold, paper currency substituted for, 128. 

Gold standard, in Kentucky politics, 219, 220. 

Government, of Kentucky, 89, 90, 93-104; 
of Confederate States of America, 165; Con- 
federate, established in Kentucky, 180, 181. 

Governor, executive power in Kentucky, 89; 
method of election, 89; change in method 
of election, 108, 109. 

Grant, General U. S., orders troops into 
Kentucky, 175; captures Forts Henry and 
Donelson, 182; gains victory at Shiloh, 
184; Lee's surrender to, 203. 

Graves, Benjamin, 119; county named after, 
120. 

Green, I>ewis W., president of Center College, 
210. 

Green, Thomas Marshall, author of T/tf 
Spanish Conspiracy, 71. 

Green, Willis, trustee of Transylvania Uni- 
versity, 57. 

Greenup, Christopher, his intercourse with 
Filson, 56: trustee of Transylvania Uni- 
versity, 57; elected governor, 113; ex- 
governor, 118. 

Greenville, one of Kentucky's oldest towns, 

55- 
Greenville, Fort, built, 197. 
Grider, Henry, Union delegate to Congress, 

170. 
Grundy, Felix, appointed chief justice, 113. 
Guerrillas, depredations of, 187, 188, 198, 199. 
Guthrie, James, statesman, 159; delegate to 

Peace Conference, 165; lawyer, 201 ; leader 

in Conservative Union convention, 202. 

Haggin, James, associate justice, 132. 
Hamilton, Alexander, killed by Aaron Burr, 

no. 
Hanson, Roger W., leader of Confederates, 

179, 182. 
" Hard Winter" of Kentucky, 38. 
Hardee, Maj )r General William J., Con- 
federate commander, 192. 
Hardin, Colonel John, commander Kentucky 

Volunteers, 87; murdered by Indians, 97. 
Hardin, Major Martin D., 119. 
Hardin, P. W., advocates free silver, 219; 

candidate for governor, 219. 
Harding, Aaron, Union delegate to Congress, 

170; opposed to abolition, 186; speech 

against negro recruiting, 198. 
Harlan, John M., Conservative nominee for 

attorney-general, 206; joins Republicans, 



28o 



INDEX 



207; 
210. 



Republican candidate for governor, 



Harlan, Major, at Blue Licks, 46, 47. 

Harmai, General, commands expedition 
against Indians, 86, 87; defeated, 87. 

Harney, B. M., Conservative nominee for 
superintendent of public instruction, 206. 

Harney, John H., editor of Louisville Demo- 
crat, 159. 

Harrison, Benjamin, succeeded by President 
Cleveland, 218. 

Harrison County officers arrested, 178. 

Harrison, General William H., at battle of 
Tippecanoe, 114; appointed commander of 
Kentucky militia, 118; appointed com- 
mander of army of the Northwest, 118; 
orders embarkation for Canada, 123. 

Harrod, James, settles in Kentucky, 16, 19; 
his intercourse with Filson, 56. 

Harrodsburg, founding of, 16 ; permanently 
settled, 19; delegates from, 21; made 
county seat, 29; Indian attack on, 30; 
school opened at, 38; opening of court at, 
52, 53; one of earliest towns, 55; Gen- 
eral Smith's corps at, 192. 

Hart, Captain Nathaniel, purchases Cherokee 
title, 20. 

Hart, Joel T., sculptor, 138, 139. 

Hart, Nathan G. T., commander of Lexing- 
ton Light Artillery, 118; county named 
after, 120. 

Hart Memorial Association, 139, n. i. 

Hawes, Richard, inaugurated provisional 
governor of Kentucky, 191. 

Helm, Ben Hardin, leader of Confederates, 
179. 

Helm, John L., inaugurated governor, 149; 
elected governor, 207; death of, 207. 

Henderson, Colonel Richard, head of Hender- 
son & Co., 20. 

Henderson, Samuel, married to Betsy Calla- 
way, 27. 

Hendricks, Thomas A., elected Vice Presi- 
dent, 215. 

iienry Fort, surrender of, 182. 

'hickman. Captain, killed at Blue Licks, 120; 
county named after, 120. 

Hickman, Confederates at, 175. 

Hickman, Rev. William, preacher in Ken- 
tucky, 84. 

Hindman, J. R., elected lieutenant governor, 
214, 215. 

Hogan, Richard, settles at Harrodsburg, 23. 

Holly, Dr. Horace, president of Transylvania 
University, 137. 

Home Guards, funds raised for, 169, 170; 
Federals, 177; their lack of discipline, 178. 



" Home of the Silent Brotherhood" founded, 
84. 

Hopewell, last town of colonial period, 84. 

House of Representatives in Kentucky gov- 
ernment, 89. 

House resolutions, synopsis of, 168, n. i. 

Houston's Station, now Hopewell, 84. 

Huguenots persecuted in France, 69. 

Hull, General, Surrender to British, 118. 

Hunt, Charlton W., calms riot, 132, 133. 

Hunter, W. Godfrey, Republican caucus 
nominee for U.S. senator, 220. 

Hurt, J. S., Conservative nominee for au- 
ditor, 206. 

Immigration to Kentucky, 9, 51. 

Inauguration ceremonies for first governor of 
Kentucky, 93-95. 

Independence of Kentucky, see Separation. 

Indians, in Kentucky, 10, 11; hostilities, 13, 
14, 16-18, 21, 30-39, 40, 41, 59, 60, 63, 64, 
85-89, 97, 114, 115; claims in Kentucky, 
14, 32; titles sold, 19, 20; besiege Boones- 
borough, 35, 36; at Bryan's Station and 
Blue Licks, 43-48; killed by Kentuckians, 
66, 67: complaint against Kentuckians, 67; 
Wilkinson's speech on, 78; troubles ended 
temporarily, 102; massacre at Raisin, 120; 
their cruelties, 122. 

Indian troubles, a political issue, 98. 

Innes, Hary, attorney-general, 62, 67; mem- 
ber Board of War, 87; U. S. district judge, 
96. 

Invasion of Kentucky, first, 173-185; second, 
186-195. 

Inventors in Kentucky, 84, 103, 137. 

Ivy Mountain, battle of, 180. 

Jackson, General Andrew, at New Orleans, 
•126; candidate for presidency, 134, 135; 
elected President, 136; his second term, 142, 

143- 

Jackson, James S., Union delegate to Con- 
gress, 170. 

Jacob, Colonel Richard T. , joins Union party, 
168; offers synopsis of House resolutions, 
168, n. i; chosen lieutenant governor, 196; 
arrested, 198. 

Jacobin clubs of France, 99. 

Jamestown settled by the English*69. 

Jay, John, proposes treaty with Spain, 70; 
secures treaty with Great Britain, 100. 

Jefferson County, established, 40, 84; be- 
comes part of Kentucky District, 51. 

Jefferson, Thomas, Breckinridge a member of 
his cabinet, 99; drafts Kentucky Resolu- 
tions, 107; elected President, 109. 



INDEX 



281 



Johnson, Colonel James, raises company, 118. 

Johnson, Colonel Richard M., raises com- 
pany, 118; in the Canada campaign, 124; 
kills Tecumseh, 125. 

Johnson, George W., Confederate leader, 179; 
elected governor, 180; killed at Shiloh, 191. 

Johnson, Madison C, lawyer, 201. 

Johnson, Robert, trustee of Transylvania 
University, 57. 

Johnston, General Albert Sidney, commands 
western Confederate forces, 177; at Mur- 
freesboro, 183; killed at Shiloh, 184. 

Jouett, Matthew Harris, portrait painter, 
138. 

Jojirnal, published at Louisville, 159. 

Judges of court/ of appeals, how appointed, 
90; attempt to remove, 131, 132. 

Judicial power, 89, 90. 

Judicial State department, changes in, 217. 

Judiciary, elective by people, 150. 

Kanawha River, battle near, 16-18. 

Kaskasia, French village, 32. 

Kennedy, William, intercourse with Filson, 
56. 

Kenton, Simon, pioneer in Kentucky, 16; 
Indian scout, 24-26. 

Keiitucke Gazette, first newspaper in Ken- 
tucky, 72; Muter's address in, 76; Brad- 
ford, editor of, 94. 

Kentucky, by Professor N. S. Shaler, 92, n. i. 

Kentucky, derivation of name, 29, n. i ; pio- 
neer days, 9-49; first white men in, 9-18; 
early settlements, 19-28; the county, 29- 
39; division of county, 40-49 ; struggle for 
independence, 50-92; Kentucky District, 
50-58; beginning of struggle, 59-68; Span- 
ish conspiracy, 69-81 ; end of struggle, 82- 
92; foundmg of the Commonwealth, 93- 
150; organizing of State government, 
93-104; political situation from 1796, 105- 
115: War of 1812, 116-126; local affairs, 
127-140; civil affairs and Mexican War, 
141-150; Civil War, 151-204; situation 
during Civil War, 151-172; invasions dur- 
ing Civil War, 173-195; civil conflicts, 196- 
204; the new Kentucky, 205-225; restora- 
tion of peace, 205-212; transition era, 213- 
226; constitution of Kentucky, 227-272. 

Kentucky Insurance Company, chartered, 
113. 

Kentucky Resolutions of Iiq8, by E. D. 
Warfield, 107 and n. i. 

Kentucky University, State College a part of, 
213; change of name, 213. 

King's Mountain, battle of, 87, 91. 

Kinkead, George Blackburn, lawyer, 201. 



Kinkead, Judge W. B., member of Opposi- 
tion party, 159; his article on J. J. Crit- 
tenden, 171; Conservative nominee for 
governor, 206 ; chairman of executive board 
of State College, 213. 

Knott, J. Proctor, elected governor, 214, 215. 

Know-Nothing party, 157, 158. 

Knox, Colonel James, pioneer in Kentucky, 
14- 

Kuklux or Regulators, 209, 210. 

La Salle, French pioneer and explorer, in 
Kentucky, 12, 32. 

Lafayette, Marquis de, Kentucky's reception 
of, 136. 

Land laws passed in Virginia, 37. 

Land speculation, 218. 

Landrum, Colonel John J., defeated at Cynthi- 
ana, 189. 

Lee family, surveyors in Kentucky, 15. 

Lee, General Robert E., surrenders to Grant, 
203. 

Leestown, one of oldest towns, 55. 

Legislative office closed to ministers, 90. 

Legislative power, vested in General Assem- 
bly, 89, 90; its limitations, 90. 

Legislative State department, changes in, 217. 

Legislature, selects Frankfort as permanent 
capital, 96; its money-raising power abol- 
ished, 150; its powers, 164; opposed to 
State convention, 164, 165; in favor of 
neutrality, 167, 168; condemns action of 
Home Guard, 178; pardons all Confeder- 
ates, 205. 

Leslie, Preston H , elected governor, 210; 
appoints Shaler chief of geological survey, 
211. 

Letcher, Robert P., elected governor, 143. 

Lewis, Colonel Charles, commander at Point 
Pleasant, 17. 

Lewis, Colonel William, commands militia, 
117; wounded at Frenchtown, 119. 

Lewis, General Andrew, commander at Point 
Pleasant, 16, 17. 

Lexington, founded in 1779, 37; largest town 
in old Kentucky, 55; Transylvania Uni- 
versity established at, 58: Wilkinson's dis- 
play at, 71, 72; first capital of Kentucky, 
93; first inauguration ceremonies held at, 
93-95; Democratic Club at, 99; Burr in, 
in; furnishes militia, 117; manufactories 
in, 128; U. S. bank established at, 134; 
Lyceum established at, 137 ; abolition news- 
paper issued at, 154; Confederates at, 190; 
F>ragg's march to, 191 ; centenary celebra- 
tion at, 217, 218. 

Lexington, battle of, 37. 



282 



INDEX 



Lexington Light Artillery, ii8. 

Lexington Light Infantry, 94. 

Lexington Observer and Reporter, 159. 

Licking River, settlements invaded, 39; 
crossed at battle of Blue Licks, 46, 47, 48. 

Lieutenant governor, office created in Ken- 
tucky, 109. 

Life and Writings of C. S. Rafinesque, by 
R. E. Call, 137, n. i. 

Life of John Filson, by R. T. Durrett, 55, 
n. I. 

Limestone, immigration to, 54. 

Lincoln, Abraham, born in Larue County, 
Kentucky, 161; elected President, 162; in- 
augurated, 165; issues Emancipation Proc- 
lamation, 196; calls for volunteers, 197; 
reelected, 202; his assassination, 203. 

Lincoln County, established, 40, 84; Indian 
attack in, 66. 

Lindsay, William J., U. S. senator, 221. 

Lindseys, fbunders of Lexington, 37. 

Little Turtle, Indian chief, 97. 

Local affairs in Kentucky, 127-140. 

Local Board of War, 87. 

Local option in Kentucky, 224. 

Logan, Benjamin, settles in Kentucky, 19, 
member of first Harrodsburg court, 29, 30; 
rescues his companion, 31, 32: appointed 
colonel, 40; at Blue Licks, 46, 48: com- 
mander at Bryan's Station, 48; calls offi- 
cers' meeting, 60; attack on Shawnee 
Indians, 65; commander in Lincoln County, 
66; member of Board of War, 87. 

Logan's fort, Indian attack on, 30; land com- 
missioners meet at, 37. 

Logan's Station, delegates from, 21, 22. 

" Long Hunters, The," pioneers in Ken- 
tucky, 13, 14. 

Losantiville, founding of, 56. 

Louisiana, purchased from the French, 109; 
secedes, 162. 

Louisville, founded, 33, 34; its social life, 
54> 55"' Connolly's intrigue in, 82, 83; Burr 
in, in; its manufactories, 128; U. S. bank 
established at, 134; Federal army organized 
at, 181; legislature adjourns to, 190; pro- 
posed capture of, 190; Buell in, 191; Filson 
Club started in, 215; Democratic State con- 
vention at, 218, 219. 

Louisville Courier, 178. 

Louisville Democrat, 159. 

Louisville Falls, immigration to, by flatboat, 
53, 54- 

Louisville Jour7ial, 159. 

Louisville legion, resolutions in honor of, 
passed by legislature, 146. 

Lyceum, established in Lexington, 137. 



Lyne, Edmond, commissioner at Logan's 

fort, 37. 
Lyon, Colonel H. B., Kentucky Confederate 

leader, 182. 

McAfee family, surveyors of Kentucky, 15, 
16; settle on Salt River, 19. 

McAfee, General Robert B., elected lieu- 
tenant governor, 131. 

McBride, pioneer in Kentucky, 12. 

McClellan, General George B., factions in 
favor of, 202; receives majority in Ken- 
tucky, 202. 

McClellan, John, settles in Kentucky, 23. 

McClellan's Station, founded, 23. 

McConnels, founders of Lexington, 37. 

McCook, Major General Alexander, Federal 
commander at Perryville, 192. 

McCreary, James B., elected governor, 214; 
elected U. S. senator, 221. 

McDowell, Samuel, judge of Kentucky Dis- 
trict, 51, 52; trustee of Transylvania Uni- 
versity, 57; president of convention for 
independence, 61, 62; president of sixth 
convention, 75. 

McGary, Hugh, settles at Harrodsburg, 23. 

McGary, Major, at Blue Licks, 46, 47. 

McHenry, Colonel John H., Kentucky 
Federal leader, 182. 

McKee and Caldwell's army, 42, 43. 

McKee, Colonel William R, in Mexican 
War, 145; killed at Buena Vista, 146. 

McKinley, William, elected President, 220. 

" Mad Anthony," General Wayne's nickname, 
97- 

" Mad River," burning of Indian towns on, 65. 

Madison County, 84. 

Madison, George, at Frenchtown, 119; death 
of, 127. 

Magoffin, Beriah, elected governor, 158; his 
message to the legislature, 163; refuses to 
furnish troops, 166; in sympathy with Con- 
federates, 175; resigns, 189. 

Magruder, Captain Billy, leader of guerrillas, 
199. [170. 

Mallory, Robert, Union delegate to Congress, 

Manassas Junction, battle near, 174. 

Manson, General, attack on Confederates, 190. 

Marshall, Colonel Thomas, surveyor for 
Fayette County, 40; delegate to seventh 
convention, 77; action in seventh conven- 
tion, 79; opposes British intrigue, 83. 

Marshall, Humphrey, candidate for delegate 
to fourth convention, 63; votes for Federal 
constitution, 74; elected U. S. senator, 102. 

Marshall, Col. Humphrey, in Mexican War, 
145; leader of Confederates, 174, 179. 



INDEX 



283 



Marshall, John, presents petition to Virginia 

Assembly, 66. 
Marshall, John, lieutenant governor, 222. 
Marshall, Thomas A., lawyer, 201. 
Marshall, Thomas F., orator and scholar, 142. 
Marshall, Thomas, brigadier general, 145, 
Martial law, Kentucky placed under, 187; 

prior to election of 1863, 197. 
Martin's and Ruddle's stations captured, 39. 
Mason County, 84. 

Masterson, James, pioneer of Kentucky, 37. 
Matthews, George, at battle of Point Pleasant, 

17- 

Maumee River, Kentucky troops at, 118; 
siege in, 121. 

May, George, surveyor for Jefferson County, 
40. 

May, John, clerk of Kentucky District, 52; 
killed by Indians, 52. 

Maysville, formerly Limestone, 54. 

Mechanical and Agricultural College estab- 
lished in Kentucky, 213. 

Mediatorial neutrality, Kentucky maintains, 
167, 168; meaning of, 168, 175, n. i. 

Meigs, Fort, siege of, 121. 

Menefee, Richard H., his career, 141, 142. 

Menendez establishes first Spanish colony, 69. 

Menzies, John W., Union delegate to Con- 
gress, T70. 

Mercer County, Kentucky, selected for settle- 
ment, 16, 84. 

Metcalf, Henry, chief of guerrilla raiders, 199. 

Metcalf, Thomas, elected governor, 135. 

Methodist revival, 112, 113. 

Methodists in Kentucky, 85. 

Mexican War, 141-150; Kentucky troops in, 
145- 

Mexico, proposed conquest of, no; war de- 
clared with, 145; capture of City of, 147; 
surrenders territory to United States, 147. 

Miami Indians, expedition against, 60, 87, 88. 

Miami, battle on the, 100. 

Miami towns, burning of, 48. 

Military and land interests in early Kentucky, 
40. 

Military oppression, 198-200. 

Military policy adopted by Congress, 187. 

Military posts in the Northwest, 59. 

Militia, demanded by the President, 117. 

Mill Springs, battle of, 181. 

Mills, Benjamin, associate justice, 130. 

Mineral wealth of Kentucky, 211. 

Miro, Spanish governor of New Orleans, 71. 

Mississippi River, De Soto's exploration of, 
69; Spanish possessions on, 69, 70; Ameri- 
cans desire to navigate, 70; its importance 
to Kentucky, 71; Kentucky's valuation of 



navigation of, 75; British plan to gain its 
navigation, 83; its navigation a political 
issue, 98; resolution of Lexington Club in 
regard to, 99; granted to U. S. by treaty 
with Spain, loi; thrown open to Ken- 
tucky, 102. 

Mississippi secedes, 162. 

Missouri Compromise Bill, 134, 135. 

Mob law in Kentucky, 210. 

Monetary issue, in State election, 219; in 
national election, 220. 

Monroe, Thomas B., superseded by Ballard, 
180. 

Monterey, battle of, 146. 

Montgomery, convention of seceded States at, 
165. 

Morehead, Charles S., elected governor, 158; 
delegate to Peace Conference, 165; arrest 
of, 178. 

Morgan, John Hunt, leaves State Guard, 
177; Confederate raider, 188, 189, 193. 

Morrisons, pioneers in Kentucky, 37. 

Mound Builders, 9, 10. 

Mount Sterling, fight near, 42. 

Murray, William, opposes Kentucky Resolu- 
tions of i-jqS, 108. 

Muter, George, judge of Kentucky District, 
51, 52; chief justice, 62; address to the 
people, 76; delegate to seventh convention, 
77; judge in court of appeals, 96; resigns 
from office, 113. 

Nashville, Federal troops take possession of, 
183; General Bragg at, 191. 

Natchez, Spanish negotiations at, loi. 

National administration, opposed to free sil- 
ver, 2ig. 

National convention, Kentucky delegates to, 
201, 202. 

National politics from 1884, 215. 

National Republican party, its rise and fall, 
135, 136; merged into Whig party, 141. 

Navigation question discussed in Kentucky, 

71.99- 

Negroes, recruited in Kentucky, 197 ; vote for 
first time, 210. 

Nelson County, 84. 

Nelson, General William, Federal com- 
mander, 174, 180; commands Richmond 
troops, 190. 

Neutrality, position of Kentucky, 161-172; 
still maintained, 174; abandoned, 175, 176. 

New court of appeals, organized, 132; abol- 
ished, 134. 

New Court party, founded, 134; controversy 
with Old Court party, 149. 

New Kentucky, The, 205-223. 



284 



INDEX 



New Orleans, Wilkinson's trading expedition 
to, 71; proposed expedition against, 99, 
100; Spanish negotiations at, 101 ; becomes 
an American possession, no; battle of, 
126. 

Newport, Kentucky volunteers at, 122. 

Newspaper, first in Kentucky, 72. 

Nicholas, George, attorney-general, 95. 

Nicholas, Samuel Smith, lawyer, 201. 

Ninth independence convention, 83. 

Normal Schools, 213, 224. 

North and South, difference in point of view, 
151, 152; growth of enmity between, 162. 

Northern Bank of Kentucky, established, 143. 

Northwest, end of war in the, 125. 

Nullification, doctrine of, 107. 

O'Doherty, Matthew, Republican nominee 

for lieutenant governor, 216. 
O'Hara, Kane, 148. 

O'Hara, Theodore, soldier and poet, 148. 
O'Hara and His Elegies, by George W. 

Ranck, 148, n. i. 
Observer and Reporter, Lexington, 159. 
Official changes, important, 189. 
Ohio Land Company in Kentucky, 12. 
Ohio River, bounty lands granted on, 14; its 

importance to Kentucky, 71. 
Old Court party, founded, 134; controversy 

with New Court party, 149. 
" Old Wisdom," John Bradford known as, 94. 
Oldham, Colonel William, expedition against 

Indians, 88. 
Omnibus Bill, Clay's, 156. 
Opposition, to Lincoln in Kentucky, 196; 

to negro recruiting in Kentucky, 198. 
Opposition party, 159. 
Ormsby, Colonel, in Mexican War, 145. 
Owen, Colonel Abraham, his death at Tippe- 
canoe, 115. 
Owen County, named after Colonel Owen, 

115; Confederate forces in, 174. 
Owsley, Judge William, elected governor, 144. 

Paducah, Federal forces at, 175; Confederate 
sentiment in, 177. 

Paine, Brigadier General E. A., his oppressive 
military rule, 199, 200; deposed, 202. 

Pakenham, General Sir Edward, commander 
at New Orleans, 126. 

Palmer, General John M., 202, 220. 

Panic, of 1873, 211 ; of i'892, 218. 

Paper currency, and its effects, 128; abun- 
dance of, 143. 

Paris, name of Houston's Station changed to, 
84; Democratic Club in, 99. 

Parliament of Boonesborough, 22. 



Parraud's translation of Filson's History, 57. 

Party names, change of, 134, 135. 

Patterson, Colonel Robert, settles at McClel- 
lan's Station, 23; a founder of Lexington, 
37; partner of Filson, 56. 

Patterson, James K., president of State Col- 
lege, 213, 214. 

Payne, Brigadier General John, commander 
at Georgetown, 118. 

Paynter, Thomas H., U, S. senator, 221. 

Peace Conference at Washington, 165. 

Peace, restoration of, 205-212. 

Penitentiary, Governor Blackburn's humane 
changes in, 214. 

Perry, Commodore, his victory on Lake Erie, 
122, 123. 

Perryville. battle of, 192. 

Petitions, to Virginia Assembly, 61, 65, 66; to 
the people, 61; of seventh convention, 79; 
against the Indians, 85. 

Philadelphia, gift for Kentucky's centenary, 
217, 218. 

Pierce, Franklin, elected President, 157. 

Pilgrims settle Plymouth, 69. 

Pillow, General Gideon J., Confederate com- 
mander, 182. 

Pioneer days, 9-49. 

Pioneer women of Kentucky, 23-27. 

Pisgah, Kentucky Academy established at, 
58. 

Pittsburgh Landing, Grant encamps at, 183. 

Planetarium, Barlow's, 137. 

Plymouth, settled by Pilgrims, 69. 

Point Pleasant, battle of, 16-18, 19; victory 
of, 87; Colonel Shelby at battle of, 90. 

Political Beginnings of Kentucky, The, by 
J. M. Brown, 73. n. i. 

Political Club, founded at Danville, 74. 

Political Club, The, by Thomas Speed, 74, 
•n. I. 

Political, issues in 1793, 98; situation in Ken- 
tucky, 105-115; conflict in Kentucky, 127; 
contests of 1844, 143, 144; situation in 1864, 
201, 202; situation from 1875, 214-223. 

Politics, national, 215. 

Polk, General Leonidas, invades Kentucky, 
174, 175; offers conditional withdrawal, 175. 

Polk, James K., elected President, 144. 

Ponce de I>eon discovers Florida, 69. 

Pope, John, offers amendment to Kentucky 
resolutions, 108. 

Pope, William, appointed lieutenant colonel, 

40- 

Population of Kentucky County, 32; of Ken- 
tucky in 1850, 152; of Kentucky in 1880 
and 1909, 225. 

Populist ticket, 219, 221. 



INDEX 



285 



Populists in legislature of 1896, 220. 

Powell, Lazarus W., Democratic nominee for 
governor, 149; elected governor, 157. 

Powell's Valley, exploration of, 12, 16. 

Power, Thomas, agent in Spanish conspira- 
cies, loi, 105. 

Prentice, George D., editor of Louisville 
Journal, 159. 

Presbyterians, in Kentucky, 84; Center Col- 
lege established by, 210. 

Preston, Colonel William, surveyor of Vir- 
ginia, 14. 

Preston, William, Confederate leader, 179; 
delegate to Virginia, 181. 

Proclamation, of neutrality in Kentucky, 169; 
of emancipation, 196. 

Proctor, General, at Frenchtown, 119; at 
Fort Meigs, 121 ; pursuit of his army, 
123 ; encamped at Moravian Towns, 125. 

Prohibition movement in Kentucky, 224. 

Prohibition ticket, 216, 219, 222. 

Prophet, Indian chief, 114. 

Proslavery movement in Kentucky, 155. 

Prosperity, financial, 128, 208, 211. 

Provost marshals appointed, 187. 

Public education in Kentucky, 213. 

Public school system reformed, 210, 211. 

Publications of the Filson Club, 21, n. 2, 
29, n. I, 74, n. I, 216. 

Pulaski County, battle in, 181. 

Radical or Republican party, 206. 
Radical Union convention, 201, 202. 
Radical Union party, 196, 200. 
Rafinesque, Professor C. S., of Transylvania 

University, 137. 
Raisin, Indian massacre at, 120. 
Ranck, George W., author of The Traveling 

Church, 84, n. i ; author of O'Hara and 

His Elegies, 148, n. i. 
Recapitulations, 18, 28, 39, 48, 58, 67, 80, 92, 



[26, 



[39, 150, 159, 



t94, 



[OO. 

197; 



103. "5, 

203, 211. 
Recovery, Fort, General Wayne at. 
Recruits, Lincoln demands 300,000, 

position to negro, 197. 
Red River, pioneer encampment on, 13. 
Reform, in public school system, 210, 

213; in legislation, 216, 217. 
Regulators or Kuklux, 209, 210. 
Relief measures, after War of 1812, 

attempt to revive, 143. 
Relief party organized, 129; its temporary 

power, 131; becomes New Court party, 

134- 
Religious denominations in Kentucky, 84, 

85. 



op- 



[29; 



Repeal bill of court of appeals, 132. 

Repeal of Alien and Sedition laws, 109; of 
Replevin law, 134. 

Replevin law, passed, 129; declared uncon- 
stitutional, 130; repealed, 134; decision 
against, 141. 

Representatives, length of term and how 
chosen, 89, 230. 

Republican party, opposed to Anti-Federal- 
ists, 99; strong in Kentucky, 108; Con 
servatives unite with, 206; Freedmen's 
Bureau arouses opposition to, 209; in na 
tional power, 215; their ticket in 1887, 216 
their victory in 1895, electing first Re 
publican State ticket, 219: elect Deboe U. S 
senator, 221; disputed election of 1899 
222; their victories in 1907 and 1908, 224 

Resolutions, of 1798, 107; of General Assem- 
bly, 175, 176. 

Revival, religious, 112. 

Revolutionary War, English strongholds dur- 
ing, 32; sentiment in Kentucky, 37. 

Reynolds, Aaron, his speech at Bryan's 
Station, 45. 

Rice, David, chairman of Transylvania Uni- 
versity board, 57. 

Richmond, Burr's trial at, 112; Confederate 
government organized at, 174; battle of, 
190. 

Riflemen, gathering of, 46. 

Robertson, George, member of Anti-Relief 
party, 129; judge in court of appeals, 201; 
his career, 201. 

Robinson, Camp Dick, Federal regiments in, 
174. 

Robinson, James F., becomes acting gov- 
ernor, 189. 

Rodman, John, elected attorney-general, 207. 

Rome, N.Y., formerly Fort Stanwix, 14. 

Roosevelt, Theodore, author of Si. Clair's 
Defeat, 88. 

Rousseau, Lovell H., Unionist, 169. 

Rowan, John, member of Relief party, 129. 

Ruddle's and Martin's stations captured, 39. 

Russell, Captain, at Point Pleasant, 17. 

Russellville, Confederate delegates at, 180. 

Saint Asaph's, Saint Augustine, etc., see " St." 

Salt River selected for settlement, 16, 19. 

School system, 210, 211, 213, 214. 

Schools in Kentucky, first, 38, 39, 57. 

Schools, Normal, 213, 224. 

Scientific and artistic life in Kentucky, 137, 

Scotch-Irish race in Kentucky, 17, 26. 
Scott, General Charles, member of Board of 
War, 87; his expedition against Indians, 88; 



286 



INDEX 



Scctt, Gen. Charles (coNti'u.) commands Ken- 
tucky militia, 97; at Fort Recoveiy, 100; 
elected governor, 114; appoints Harrison 
commander of Kentucky militia, 118. 
Scott, J. M., commander of militia, 117. 
Sebastian, Benjamin, his treachery to Ken- 
tucky, 76; receives pension, 80; judge in 
court of appeals, 96; agent in Spanish con- 
spiracies, loi, 105; his treachery exposed, 
loi ; trial of, 113. 
Secession of Southern States, 162, 163. 
Second constitutional convention, 108, 109. 
Second independence convention, 62. 
Second invasion of Kentucky, 186, 195. 
Second Spanish conspiracy, loi. 
Self-protection, right granted Kentucky, 64. 
Senators, State, election, length of term, etc., 

89, 230. 
Separation of Kentucky from Virginia, first 
conventions for, 61, 62; first act of separa- 
tion, 62, 63; self-protection authorized, 63, 
64; postponement of separation, 65-67; 
action in regard to Spanish conspiracy, 
69-71; further conventions, 73; delay in 
presenting applications, 73-76; people's 
patience and prudence, 76, 77; opposing 
sentiments in regard to Virginia's course, 
77,78; turning point in contest, 79; loyalty 
of Kentucky, 80; further delay in Congress, 
82, 83, 84; last convention, 89; Kentucky 
becomes an independent State, 89; the new 
government, 89-92. 
Settlements in Kentucky, early, 19-27. 
Seventh independence convention, 76, 77, 

78. 
Shackleford, Colonel James M., Kentucky 

Federal leader, 182. 
Shaler, Nathaniel Southgate, author of Ken- 
tucky, 92, n. I ; chief of geological survey, 
211. 
Shawnee Indians in Kentucky, 16-18; yield 
Kentucky to the English, ig; rumored 
march against, 43; proposed attack against, 
65. 
Sheaf of Wheat inn. Governor Shelby's stay 

at, 95. 
Shelby, Captain Evan, at battle of Point 

Pleasant, 17. 
Shelby, Colonel Isaac, trustee of Transyl- 
vania University, 57 ; member of Board of 
War, 87; elected first governor of Ken- 
tucky, 90; account of, 90-92; his journey 
to Lexington, 93, 94; his inauguration, 94, 
95; his address to the two houses, 95; 
drafts 1000 militiamen, 97; his position at 
time of French conspiracy, 100; at battle of 
Point Pleasant, 117; governor, 118; re- 



elected governor, 120, 121 ; at Newport 
122. 
Sherman, John, presides over U. S. Senate 

215- 
Shiloh, battle of, 183, 184. 
Siege of Boonesborough, 35, 36. 
Silver, paper currency substituted for, 128 

contest over free, 219, 220. 
Simms, William E., delegate to Virginia, 181 
Sisters of Loretto, convent of, 84. 
Six Nations, Kentucky purchased from, 14 

19- 
Sixth independence convention, 75, 76. 
Skins used as currency, 128. 
Slaughter, Gabriel, becomes governor, 127. 
Slavery, prohibited in Kentucky, 90; Claj 
opposed to, 107; provisions for its continu 
ation, 150; in revised constitution of Ken 
tucky, 150, 152; as cause of Civil War 
151; in the South and in Kentucky, 151 
152; opposition to its abolition in Ken 
tucky, 152, 153; question afiected by an 
nexation of Texas, 156; war necessary fo: 
its abolition, 173; abolished in District o 
Columbia, 186; property rights not to b( 
interfered with, 186; Emancipation Procla 
mation issued, 196; Thirteenth Amend 
ment, 203; Freedmen's Bureau, 208, 209; 
negroes obtain right of suffrage, 209. 
Slaves, characteristics of, 153, 154. 
Smith, D. Howard, elected auditor, 207. 
Smith, General E. Kirby, invades Kentucky, 

190, 191; at Harrodsburg, 192. 
Smith, General Green Clay, pursues Morgan, 

189. 
Smith, Z. F., school superintendent, 207. 
Social life in Kentucky in 1825, 136, 137. 
Society of Equity, American, 225. 
South Carolina secedes, 162. 
Southern point of view, how different from 

Northern, 151, 152. 
Southern Rights convention against Lincoln, 

202. 
" Southern Rights " element in legislature, 

167. 
Southern States, slavery in, 151; secession 

of, 162. 
Southern territory of United States, its extent, 

69. 
Spain, purposed alliance with, 78, loi ; ani- 
mosity towards, 98; Lexington Club de- 
mands right of Mississippi from, 99; treaty 
with United States, loi ; cedes Louisiana 
to French, 109. 
Spanish colony of St. Augustine founded, 69; 
possessions in America, 69, 70; conspiracy, 
first, 69-81; conspiracy, second, loi; con- 



INDEX 



287 



spiracy, third, 105; silver dollars as cur- 
rency, 128. 
Spanish Conspiracy, The, by T. M. Green, 

71- 

Specie payment suspended, 143. 

Speculation, bad results of, 143; in land, 218. 

Speed, James, trustee of Transylvania Uni- 
versity, 57. 

Speed, James, votes for the Union, 169; an 
able lawyer, 201 ; joins Republicans, 207. 

Speed, Thomas, author of The Wilderness 
Road, 21, n. 1; author of The Political 
Club, 24, n. I. 

Spottsylvania County, Va., emigration from, 
84. 

St. Asaph's Station, delegates from, 21, 22. 

St. Augustine, Spanish colony, 69. 

St. Clair, General Arthur, appointed com- 
mander in chief of army of Northwest, 87 ; 
Kentucky opposed to, 88: defeated at 
Wabash River, 89; retires from command, 

97- 
St. Clair's Defeat, by Theodore Roosevelt, 

88, n. I. 
Stanwix, Fort, treaty of, 14. 
State banks, rise of, 143. 
State College of Kentucky, 213. 
State constitution, revision of, 108, 109, 150, 

216, 217. 
State Guards, 169, 176, 177. 
State militia, in conflict with legislature in 

1900, 222. 
State penitentiary, Blackburn's humane 

changes in, 214. 
State Rights, doctrine of, 107, 108, 151, 155. 
State University, 213, 214, 224. 
Statutory courts abolished, 217. 
Steamboat invented, 102, 103. 
Stephens, Alexander H., author of IVar be- 

tweeti the States, 151, n. i. 
Stevenson, John W., elected lieutenant gov- 
ernor, 207; appointed governor, 207, 208; 

elected to U. S. Senate, 210. 
Stewart, James, at battle of Point Pleasant, 

17- 

Stewart, John, captured by Indians, 13. 

Stoner, Michael, guide to surveyors in Ken- 
tucky, 16. 

Stricken Heart, Convent of, 84. 

Struggle for independence, in Kentucky, 
50-92 ; beginning of, 59-68 ; end of, 
82-92. 

" Sue Munday," chief of guerrilla raiders, 
hung, 199. 

Suffrage right, extent of, 90; negro, 209. 

Sumter, Fort, first gun fired at, 165. 

Superior court abolished, 217. 



Supreme and superior courts, the judicial 

power, 89, 90. 
Surrender of army of Northern Virginia, 203. 
Surveyors in Kentucky, 14, 15. 
Sycamore Shoals, Indian assemblage at, 20. 

Tate, J. W., elected treasurer, 207. 

Taylor, General Zachary, in Mexican War, 

145. 
Taylor, Hancock, early surveyor, 14. 
Taylor, Harrison, Conservative nominee for 

lieutenant governor, 206. 
Taylor, William S., governor, 222, 223. 
Tecumseh, chief of Wabash Indians, 114; 
restrains massacre of Americans, 122; death 
of, 125. 

Tenth convention, 83, 89. 

Territory of U. S., extent of Southern, 69. 

Texas, Clay's opposition to its annexation, 
144; admitted to Union, 144; effect of its 
annexation, 156; secedes, 162. 

Thames, battle of, 125. 

Third independence convention, 62. 

Third revision of State constitution, 150. 

Third Spanish conspiracy, 105. 

Thirteenth Amendment, adopted, 203, 208; 
opposed by Kentucky, 203. 

Thomas, Major General George H., at Mill 
Springs, 181. 

Thompson, James, surveyor, 40. 

Thorne, William P., lieutenant governor, 224. 

Tilghman, General Lloyd, goes over to Con- 
federates, 177; surrenders Fort Henry, 182. 

Timber regions in Kentucky, 211. 

Tippecanoe, battle of, 114, 115. - 

Tobacco war, 225. 

Todd, Colonel Charles S., ambassador, 125. 

Todd, Colonel John, surveyor in Kentucky, 
15; member of first Harrodsburg court, 
29, 30; elected governor of Illinois County, 
33; appointed colonel Fayette County, 40; 
at battle of Blue Licks, 46. 

Todd, Major Levi, surveyor in Kentucky, 15; 
clerk of Kentucky County, 30; at siege of 
Bryan's Station, 45; at Blue Licks, 46, 47; 
intercour.se with Filson, 56. 

Todd, Thomas, second convention for inde- 
pendence, 61, 62; clerk of constitutional 
convention, 108; appointed judge in U. S. 
supreme court, 113; member of war coun- 
cil, 118. 

Tompkins, Christopher, member of Anti- 
Relief party, 129; Anti-Relief candidate for 
governor, 131. 

Tompkinsville, Morgan's army at, 188. 

Trade in America, 127. 

Transition era in Kentucky, 213-226. 



288 



INDEX 



Transylvania, colony of, 20, 21 ; purchase an- 
nulled, 22; title annulled, 29, 

Transylvania Seminary, 57, 83. 

Transylvania University founded, 58; its 
high rank, 137; goes out of existence, 210. 

Transylvania University, new, 213. 

Trappist monks at Bardstown, 84. 

Traveling Church, Ranck's, 84. 

Treaties, of Fort Stanwix, 14; of Shawnee 
Indians, 17, 18; between U. S. and Great 
Britain, 50; with Spain proposed, 70; with 
Indians, 86; between U. S. and Spain, loi ; 
of Ghent, 125; between U. S. and Mexico, 
147. 

Trigg, Stephen, at Logan's fort, 37; lieuten- 
ant colonel, 40; at Blue Licks, 46, 47. 

Trimble, John, member Relief party, 129; 
associate justice, 132. 

True American, abolition paper, 154, 155. 

Truman, Major, murdered by Indians, 97. 

Twelfth Street fort in Louisville, 34. 

Twetty, Wm., cuts roads in Kentucky, 21. 

Tyler, President, admits Texas, 144. 

" Underground railroad," 152. 

Underwood, John C., lieut. governor, 214. 

Underwood, Judge Joseph R., member Oppo- 
sition party, 159; joins Union party, 169. 

Union party, 162-164, 166-168, 173, 174, 178, 
196, 205. 

United States Bank, at Louisville and Lexing- 
ton, 134; Jackson vetoes bill of recharter, 
143. 

Veracruz, capture of, 147. 

Vincennes, capture of, 33. 

Virginia, Kentucky a part of, 14, 29; protects 
Kentucky settlers, 22; its relation to Ken- 
tucky, 59, 60; Kentucky petitions for sepa- 
ration from, 61, 62, 63; Kentucky's bitter- 
ness against, 66, 67, 77, 78 ; seventh conven- 
tion's address to, 79, 80; legislature's action 
in regard to Kentucky, 83; Kentucky sepa- 
rated from, 89; concurs with Kentucky, 108. 

Wabash Indians, proposed attack on, 64; ex- 
pedition against, 88, 89; rebellion of, 114. 

Wadsworth, Wm. H., Union delegate to Con- 
gress, 170; opposes abolition, 186; against 
negro recruiting, 198; Republican, 207. 

Walker, Dr. Thomas, pioneer, 12. 

Wallace, Caleb, trustee Transylvania Uni- 
versity, 57; judge court of appeals, 96. 

Wallace, General Lew, at Cincinnati, 191. 

War between the States, Stephens's, 151. 

War debt, 128. 

War Department, orders to Kentucky, 197. 



Warfield, Ethelbert D., author, 107. 

Wars, Indian, 13, 14, 16-18, 21, 30-39, 40, 41, 
59, 63, 64, 85-89, 97, 114, 115, 120, 122; 
French and Indian, 14, 32; Revolutionary, 
37; War of 1812, 116-126; Mexican, 141- 
150; Civil, 151-204. 

Washington, George, President U. S., 83; his 
policy in French War, 98; his action in 
French conspiracy, 100; monument to, 155. 

Washington, Peace Conference at, 165. 

Watauga River, Indian assemblage at, 20. 

Watauga settlement, volunteers from, 17. 

Wayne, General, commander of armies of 
Northwest, 97; military ability, 98; cam- 
paign against Indians, 100, loi. 

Webster, Miss Delia A., abolitionist, 152, n. i. 

Wells, Colonel Samuel, rescues Floyd, 41, 42; 
at Georgetown, 117; at Frenchtown, 119. 

West, Edward, invents steamboat, 103. 

West, M. D., quartermaster general of State 
Guards, 170; superseded by Dudley, 179. 

Wheeling, proposed attack on, 42. 

Whig party, in power, 141, 143; downfall of, 

157- 

" White Renegade," Girty's nickname, 45, 46. 

Wickliffe, Charles A., at Peace Conference, 
165; Union delegate to Congress, 170. 

Wickliffe, D. C, editor, 159. 

Wickliffe, Robert, Anti-Relief member, 129. 

Wilderness Road, 21, 53. 

Wilkinson, General James, his store, 54, 55; 
his petition, 61 ; member fourth convention, 
62, 63 ; inflames opposition against Virginia, 
66, 70; his treasonable Spanish project, 
70-72, 76; schemes in Fayette election, 
77-80; in Indian warfare, 88, 97; major gen- 
eral, 109, no; NewOrleansdelivered to, no. 

William and Mary College, 83. 

Williams, Gen. John S., at Cerro Gordo, 147; 
Confederate leader, 179; U. S. senator, 214. 

Williams, John, clerk at Logan's fort, 37. - 

Willson, Augustus E., governor, 224. 

Winchester, General, 118, 119. 

Wolfe, Judge Nathaniel, Unionist, 159, 169. 

Wolford, Colonel Frank L., Federal, 181 ; pur- 
sues Morgan, 189; arrested, 198. 

IVofnan Triumphant, group by Hart, 139. 

Woodford County established, 83, 84. 

Woolly, Aaron K., lawyer, 201. 

Worthington, W. J., lieutenant governor, 219. 

Wyandots, Estill's pursuit of the, 42. 

Yorktown, Cornwallis's surrender at, 50. 
Young, John C. , president Center College, 210. 

Zollicoffer, General, invades Kentucky, 175, 
180; killed at Mill Springs, 181. 



H134 89 



*•« 






'^•i' 




















.-^^ /^v/k*- ^^. A^ *'^ 
















■ v-w/ %W--/ v ,<■ ... 













^O 







• V'-. "^C 



HECKMAN 

BINDERY INC. 

^^OCT 89 



N. MANCHESTER, 







//•"- 




o'' V*^-'\/ .. V'-- 






*. .*'^\-:i"ii-/V ,^''.';^-.V . 



